chapter 14: industrialization, 1865-1901 · 2018-08-06 · chapter 14 industrialization 439 1877...
TRANSCRIPT
1882• Standard Oil
forms trust
1876• Korea forced to
trade with Japan
▲
▼
434
Industrialization1865–1901
1869• Chemist Dmitri Mendeleyev
creates periodic table of elements
Why It MattersThe rise of the United States as an industrial power began after the Civil War. Many factors
promoted industry, including cheap labor, new inventions and technology, and plentiful raw
materials. Railroads rapidly expanded. Government policies encouraged growth, and large
corporations became an important part of the economy. As industry expanded, workers tried to
form unions to fight for better wages and working conditions.
The Impact TodayTrends which began in this era can still be seen today.
• Corporations continue to play an important role.
• Technology continues to change American life.
• Unions remain powerful in many industries.
The American Vision Video The Chapter 14 video, “Building America,” examines industrial expansion in theUnited States in the late 1800s.
▼
1869• Transcontinental
railroad completed
▲
1876• Alexander Graham Bell
invents telephone
▲
1879• Edison
perfects
lightbulb
▲
1867• British colonies unite to
form Dominion of Canada
1881• Russian czar
Alexander II
assassinated
▼▼
1865 1875 1885
Hayes1877–1881
Arthur1881–1885
Cleveland1885–1889
Garfield1881
Grant1869–1877
A. Johnson1865–1869
435
1886• Haymarket
Square riot
HISTORY
Chapter OverviewVisit the American Vision
Web site at tav.glencoe.com
and click on Chapter
Overviews—Chapter 14 to
preview chapter information.
This painting by twentieth-century artist Aaron Bohrod captures the dynamism of an
industrializing nation. Bohrod titled his work The Big Blow: the Bessemer Process.
T. Roosevelt1901–1909▲
▲
▲
▲
▲
▼ ▼▼
B. Harrison1889–1893
McKinley1897–1901
Cleveland1893–1897
1895 1905
1892• Homestead
strike occurs
1894• Pullman strike
begins
1901• J.P. Morgan
forms U.S. Steel
1903• Women’s Trade
Union League
founded
1892• Rudolf Diesel patents
diesel engine
1896• Athens hosts first
modern Olympic
games
1900• Boxer Rebellion
begins in China
On October 21, 1879, Thomas Alva Edison and his team of workers were too
excited to sleep. For weeks they had worked to create an electric incandescent lamp, or
lightbulb, that would burn for more than a few minutes. For much of the 1800s, inven-
tors had struggled to develop a form of lighting that would be cheaper, safer, and
brighter than traditional methods such as candles, whale oil, kerosene, and gas. If
Edison and his team could do it, they would change the world. Finally, after weeks of
dedicated effort, they turned night into day. Edison later recalled:
“We sat and looked and the lamp continued to burn and the longer it burned the more
fascinated we were. None of us could go to bed and there was no sleep for over 40 hours;
we sat and just watched it with anxiety growing into elation. It lasted about 45 hours and
then I said, ‘If it will burn 40 hours now I know I can make it burn a hundred.’”—quoted in Eyewitness to America
1859
Edwin Drake
drills first oil well
436 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
✦ 1890
The United States IndustrializesAlthough the Industrial Revolution began in the United States in the early 1800s, the
nation was still largely a farming country when the Civil War erupted. Out of a popula-
tion of more than 30 million, only 1.3 million Americans worked in industry in 1860.
After the Civil War, industry rapidly expanded, and millions of Americans left their farms
to work in mines and factories.
By the early 1900s, Americans had transformed the United States into the world’s
leading industrial nation. By 1914 the nation’s gross national product (GNP)—the total
The Rise of Industry
Main IdeaAmerican industry grew rapidly after the
Civil War, bringing revolutionary changes
to American society.
Key Terms and Namesgross national product, Edwin Drake,
laissez-faire, entrepreneur, Morrill Tariff,
Alexander Graham Bell, Thomas Alva
Edison
Reading StrategyOrganizing As you read about the
changes brought about by industrializa-
tion, complete a graphic organizer similar
to the one below listing the causes of
industrialization.
Reading Objectives• Identify the effects of expanding popu-
lation on industry.
• Explain the effects of technological
innovations such as the telephone and
telegraph on American development.
Section ThemeEconomic Factors The free enterprise
system nurtured the growth of American
industry.
1865
Thaddeus Lowe
invents ice machine
c. 1893
Northrop automatic
loom introduced
✦ 1860 ✦ 1870 ✦ 1880
Causes
United States
Becomes an
Industrial Nat ion
1876
Alexander Graham Bell
invents telephone
1879
Thomas Edison
perfects lightbulb
Thomas Edison
value of all goods and services produced by a
country—was eight times greater than it had been
when the Civil War ended.
Natural Resources An abundance of raw materials
was one reason for the nation’s industrial success. The
United States contained vast natural resources upon
which industry in the 1800s depended, including
water, timber, coal, iron, and copper. The presence of
these resources meant that American companies
could obtain them cheaply and did not have to import
them from other countries. Many of the nation’s
resources were located in the mountains of the
American West. The settlement of this region after the
Civil War helped to accelerate industrialization, as
did the construction of the transcontinental railroad.
Railroads brought settlers and miners to the region,
and carried the resources back to factories in the East.
At the same time, a new resource, petroleum,
began to be exploited. Even before the invention of
the automobile, petroleum was in high demand
because it could be turned into kerosene. Kerosene
was used in lanterns and stoves. The American oil
industry was built on the demand for kerosene. It
began in western Pennsylvania, where residents had
long noticed oil bubbling to the surface of area
springs and streams. In 1859 Edwin Drake drilled
the first oil well near Titusville, Pennsylvania. By
1900 oil fields from Pennsylvania to Texas had been
opened. As oil production rose, it fueled economic
expansion.
A Large Workforce The human resources avail-
able to American industry were as important as nat-
ural resources in enabling the nation to industrialize
rapidly. Between 1860 and 1910, the population of
the United States almost tripled. This population
provided industry with a large workforce and also
created greater demand for the consumer goods that
factories produced.
Population growth stemmed from two causes—
large families and a flood of immigrants. American
industry began to grow at a time when social and
economic conditions in China and eastern Europe
convinced many people to leave their nations and
move to the United States in search of a better life.
Between 1870 and 1910, roughly 20 million immi-
grants arrived in the United States. These multitudes
added to the growing industrial workforce, helping
factories increase their production and furthering
demand for industrial products.
Explaining How did oil production
affect the American economy?
Reading Check
CHAPTER 14 Industrialization 437
N
S
EW
200 kilometers0Lambert Equal-Area projection
200 miles0
40°N
80°W90°W
Chicago
Pittsburgh
New York City
Washington, D.C.
Boston
Major Industries, c. 1900
Coal miningIron orePrairieChief manu-facturing citiesIron/Steel mills
Oil field
Railroad
Sawmills
Early
Pennsylvania
oil well
1. Interpreting Maps Where were most industrial cities in
the Northeast located?
2. Applying Geography Skills What natural resources
contributed to making Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, a major
steel center?
Free EnterpriseAnother important factor that enabled the United
States to industrialize rapidly was the free enterprise
system. In the late 1800s, many Americans embraced
the idea of laissez-faire (leh·say·FAR), literally “let
do,” a French phrase meaning “let people do as they
choose.” Supporters of laissez-faire believe the govern-
ment should not interfere in the economy other than to
protect private property rights and maintain peace.
These supporters argue that if the government regu-
lates the economy, it increases costs and eventually
hurts society more than it helps.
Laissez-faire relies on supply and demand rather
than the government to regulate prices and wages.
Supporters claim that a free market with competing
companies leads to greater efficiency and creates
more wealth for everyone. Laissez-faire advocates
also support low taxes to ensure that private individ-
uals, not the government, will make most of the deci-
sions about how the nation’s wealth is spent. They
also believe that the government’s debt should be
kept limited since money the government borrows
from banks is not available to be loaned to individu-
als for their own uses.
In the United States, the profit motive attracted
people of high ability and ambition into business.
American entrepreneurs—people who risk their cap-
ital in organizing and running a business—appreci-
ated the challenges and rewards of building a
business and making profits for themselves.
In the late 1800s, the prospect of making money in
manufacturing and transportation attracted many
entrepreneurs. The savings that New Englanders
accumulated through trade, fishing, whaling, textile
mills, and shoe manufacturing helped build hundreds
of factories and thousands of miles of railroad track.
An equally important source of private capital was
Europe, especially Great Britain. Foreign investors
saw more opportunity for profit and growth in the
United States than at home, and their money also
helped to fund the nation’s industrial buildup.
Explaining What does it mean
when a government has a laissez-faire economic policy?
Government’s Role in IndustrialismIn many respects, the United States practiced
laissez-faire economics in the late 1800s. State and
federal governments kept taxes and spending
low and did not impose costly regulations on
industry. Nor did they try to control wages and
prices. In other ways, the government went beyond
laissez-faire and adopted policies intended to help
industry, although these policies frequently pro-
duced results other than what had been intended.
Since the early 1800s, the struggle between the
northeastern states and the southern states had
shaped the economic debate in the United States.
Northern leaders wanted high tariffs to protect
American industry from foreign competition. They
also sought federal subsidies for companies build-
ing roads, canals, and railroads to the west.
Southern leaders opposed subsidizing internal
improvements, and they favored low tariffs to pro-
mote trade and to keep the cost of imported manu-
factured goods low.
The Civil War ended this debate. When the South
seceded, the Republicans were left in control of
Congress. They quickly passed the Morrill Tariff,
Reading Check
438 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
1852
Elisha Otis,
elevator brake1864
George Pullman,
rail sleeping car
✦ 1850
1876
Alexander Graham
Bell, telephone1865
Thaddeus Lowe,
ice machine
1874
Stephen Dudley Field,
electric streetcar
✦ 1865
American Inventions
CHAPTER 14 Industrialization 439
1877
Thomas Edison,
phonograph
1883
Jan E. Matzeliger,
shoemaking machine
1893
Charles and J. Frank Duryea,
gasoline-powered car1887
Granville T. Woods,
electromechanical
brake
1879
Thomas Edison,
incandescent lightbulb
1879
James Ritty, cash register
✦ 1895✦ 1880
reversing years of declining tariffs. By the end of the
Civil War, tariffs had nearly tripled. Congress also
gave vast tracts of western land and nearly $65 mil-
lion in loans to western railroads. The government
also sold public lands with mineral resources for
much less than their market value. Historians still
dispute whether these policies helped to industrial-
ize the country.
Supporters of laissez-faire generally favor free
trade and oppose subsidies, believing that tariffs and
subsidies drive up prices and protect inefficient com-
panies. They point out that one reason the United
States industrialized so rapidly in the 1800s was
because it was one of the largest free trade areas in
the world. Unlike Europe, which was divided into
dozens of states, each with tariffs, the entire United
States was open to trade. The Constitution bans
states from imposing tariffs, and there were few fed-
eral regulations to impede the movement of goods
across the country. Similarly, the United States prac-
ticed free trade in labor, placing very few restrictions
on immigration.
High tariffs, however, contradicted laissez-faire
ideas and hurt many Americans. When the United
States raised tariffs against foreign goods, other
countries raised their tariffs against American goods.
This hurt American companies trying to sell goods
overseas, and in particular, it hurt farmers who sold
their products to Europe. Ironically, the problems
farmers faced may have helped speed up industrial-
ization, as many rural Americans decided to leave
their farms and take jobs in the new factories.
Despite the problems tariffs created for trade,
many business leaders and members of Congress
believed they were necessary. Much of Western
Europe had already industrialized, and few believed
that the new American industries could compete
with the large established European factories unless
tariffs were put in place to protect them. By the early
1900s, many American industries were large and
highly competitive. Business leaders increasingly
began to push for free trade because they believed
they could compete internationally and win.
Analyzing Do you think govern-
ment policies at this time helped or hindered industrialization?
Why?
New InventionsA flood of important inventions helped increase
the nation’s productive capacity and improved the
network of transportation and communications that
was vital to the nation’s industrial growth. New
inventions led to the founding of new corporations,
which produced new wealth and new jobs.
TECHNOLOGY
Bell and the Telephone One of the most dramatic
inventions in the late 1800s came in the field of com-
munications. In 1874 a young Scottish-American
inventor named Alexander Graham Bell suggested
the idea of a telephone to his assistant, Thomas
Watson. Watson recalled, “He had an idea by which
he believed it would be possible to talk by tele-
graph.” Bell intended to make an electrical current of
varying intensity transmit sound.
Bell worked until 1876 before he succeeded in trans-
mitting his voice. Picking up the crude telephone, he
called to the next room, “Come here, Watson, I want
you.” Watson heard and came. The telephone
Reading Check
revolutionized both business and personal communi-cation. In 1877 Bell and others organized the BellTelephone Company, which eventually became theAmerican Telephone and Telegraph Company (AT&T).
Edison and Electricity Perhaps the most famousinventor of the late 1800s was Thomas Alva Edison.His laboratory at Menlo Park, New Jersey, staffed byskilled assistants, became the forerunner of the mod-ern research laboratory. Edison stood as a symbol forthe emerging age of technology.
Edison first achieved international fame in 1877with the invention of the phonograph. Two yearslater, he perfected the lightbulb and the electric gen-erator. His laboratory then went on to invent orimprove several other major devices, including thebattery, the dictaphone, and the motion picture.
In 1882 an Edison company began to transformAmerican society when it started supplying electricpower to New York City customers. In 1889 severalEdison companies merged to form the Edison Gen-eral Electric Company, which today is known as GE.
Technology’s Impact As knowledge about technol-ogy grew, almost everyone in the United States feltits effects. Shortly after the Civil War, ThaddeusLowe invented the ice machine, the basis of the refrig-erator. In the early 1870s, Gustavus Swift hired anengineer to develop a refrigerated railroad car. In 1877Swift shipped the first refrigerated load of fresh meat.The widespread use of refrigeration kept food freshlonger and reduced the risk of food poisoning.
The textile industry had long depended on ma-chines to turn fibers into cloth. By the mid-1800s, theintroduction of the Northrop automatic loom allowedcloth to be made at an even faster rate. Bobbins, whichpreviously had been changed by hand, were nowchanged automatically without stopping the loom.
Great changes also took place in the clothingindustry. Standard sizes, developed from measure-ments taken of Union soldiers during the Civil War,were used in the manufacture of ready-made clothes.Power-driven sewing machines and cloth cuttersrapidly moved the clothing business from small tai-lor shops to large factories.
Similar changes took place in shoemaking. Largefactories began using new processes and inventionsto mass-produce shoes. They could make shoes moreefficiently than cobblers and sell them for lowerprices. By 1900 local cobblers had nearly disap-peared. Prices of many other products also droppedas the United States industrialized.
Technology’s impact also included improved con-nections among people. In 1866 Cyrus Field laid atelegraph cable across the Atlantic Ocean. Thistransatlantic cable provided instant contact betweenthe United States and Europe. Another innovationwas the radio. By the 1920s, radios had become com-mon in American homes, and radio stations sprangup throughout the United States.
Explaining How did the use of
electric power affect the economic development of the United
States?
Reading Check
Writing About History
440 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
Invention Effects
telephone
lightbulb
automatic loom
Checking for Understanding
1. Define: gross national product, laissez-faire, entrepreneur.
2. Identify: Edwin Drake, Morrill Tariff,Alexander Graham Bell, Thomas AlvaEdison.
3. Explain how an abundance of naturalresources contributed to economicgrowth in the United States in the late1800s.
Reviewing Themes
4. Economic Factors How did theprinciples of the free enterprise system,laissez-faire, and profit motiveencourage the rise of industry?
Critical Thinking
5. Synthesizing What role did the federalgovernment play in increasing indus-trialization in the United States after theCivil War?
6. Organizing Use a graphic organizersimilar to the one below to indicatehow the inventions listed affected thenature of American work and business.
Analyzing Visuals
7. Applying Time Lines Copy the timeline on pages 438 and 439 onto a separate sheet of paper. Add otherinventions you have learned about tothe time line in proper chronologicalorder. Be sure to include the date foreach invention.
8. Descriptive Writing Imagine you are ayoung person living in this country inthe late 1800s. Choose one of theinventions discussed in the section, andwrite a journal entry describing itsimpact on your life. Use standard gram-mar, spelling, sentence structure, andpunctuation.
revolutionized both business and personal communi-cation. In 1877 Bell and others organized the BellTelephone Company, which eventually became theAmerican Telephone and Telegraph Company (AT&T).
Edison and Electricity Perhaps the most famousinventor of the late 1800s was Thomas Alva Edison.His laboratory at Menlo Park, New Jersey, staffed byskilled assistants, became the forerunner of the mod-ern research laboratory. Edison stood as a symbol forthe emerging age of technology.
Edison first achieved international fame in 1877with the invention of the phonograph. Two yearslater, he perfected the lightbulb and the electric gen-erator. His laboratory then went on to invent orimprove several other major devices, including thebattery, the dictaphone, and the motion picture.
In 1882 an Edison company began to transformAmerican society when it started supplying electricpower to New York City customers. In 1889 severalEdison companies merged to form the Edison Gen-eral Electric Company, which today is known as GE.
Technology’s Impact As knowledge about technol-ogy grew, almost everyone in the United States feltits effects. Shortly after the Civil War, ThaddeusLowe invented the ice machine, the basis of the refrig-erator. In the early 1870s, Gustavus Swift hired anengineer to develop a refrigerated railroad car. In 1877Swift shipped the first refrigerated load of fresh meat.The widespread use of refrigeration kept food freshlonger and reduced the risk of food poisoning.
The textile industry had long depended on ma-chines to turn fibers into cloth. By the mid-1800s, theintroduction of the Northrop automatic loom allowedcloth to be made at an even faster rate. Bobbins, whichpreviously had been changed by hand, were nowchanged automatically without stopping the loom.
Great changes also took place in the clothingindustry. Standard sizes, developed from measure-ments taken of Union soldiers during the Civil War,were used in the manufacture of ready-made clothes.Power-driven sewing machines and cloth cuttersrapidly moved the clothing business from small tai-lor shops to large factories.
Similar changes took place in shoemaking. Largefactories began using new processes and inventionsto mass-produce shoes. They could make shoes moreefficiently than cobblers and sell them for lowerprices. By 1900 local cobblers had nearly disap-peared. Prices of many other products also droppedas the United States industrialized.
Technology’s impact also included improved con-nections among people. In 1866 Cyrus Field laid atelegraph cable across the Atlantic Ocean. Thistransatlantic cable provided instant contact betweenthe United States and Europe. Another innovationwas the radio. By the 1920s, radios had become com-mon in American homes, and radio stations sprangup throughout the United States.
Explaining How did the use of
electric power affect the economic development of the United
States?
Reading Check
Writing About History
440 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
Invention Effects
telephone
lightbulb
automatic loom
Checking for Understanding
1. Define: gross national product, laissez-faire, entrepreneur.
2. Identify: Edwin Drake, Morrill Tariff,Alexander Graham Bell, Thomas AlvaEdison.
3. Explain how an abundance of naturalresources contributed to economicgrowth in the United States in the late1800s.
Reviewing Themes
4. Economic Factors How did theprinciples of the free enterprise system,laissez-faire, and profit motiveencourage the rise of industry?
Critical Thinking
5. Synthesizing What role did the federalgovernment play in increasing indus-trialization in the United States after theCivil War?
6. Organizing Use a graphic organizersimilar to the one below to indicatehow the inventions listed affected thenature of American work and business.
Analyzing Visuals
7. Applying Time Lines Copy the timeline on pages 438 and 439 onto a separate sheet of paper. Add otherinventions you have learned about tothe time line in proper chronologicalorder. Be sure to include the date foreach invention.
8. Descriptive Writing Imagine you are ayoung person living in this country inthe late 1800s. Choose one of theinventions discussed in the section, andwrite a journal entry describing itsimpact on your life. Use standard gram-mar, spelling, sentence structure, andpunctuation.
441
Critical Thinking
The Wright Brothers Triumph at Kitty HawkWhy Learn the Skill?
Just as you are about to leave home to catch your
school bus, you hear a radio report. Firefighters are
battling a blaze near the bus garage. Your bus is
late. Although no one told you, you know that the
fire disrupted the bus schedule. You have made an
inference. From the limited facts available, you
formed a conclusion. By combining facts and gen-
eral knowledge, you inferred that the fire trucks
delayed your bus.
Learning the Skill
Learning how to make inferences will help you
draw conclusions about particular situations. To
make accurate inferences, follow these steps:
• Read or listen carefully for stated facts and ideas.
• Review what you already know about the same
topic or situation.
• Use logic and common sense to form a conclu-
sion about the topic.
• If possible, find information that proves or dis-
proves your inference.
Practicing the Skill
Read the following passage about early air-
planes, and then answer the questions that follow.
On December 8, 1903, Samuel Langley was ready forhis second attempt at flying a manned, self-propelledaircraft. This had never been done before.
Langley used a $50,000 U.S. government grant tobuild a plane based on unmanned aircraft designs,adding a very powerful engine. The plane broke apart ontakeoff and crashed into the Potomac River.
In contrast, Wilbur and Orville Wright used a littlemore than $1,000 of their personal savings to build theiraircraft. The brothers carefully studied the problems withprevious planes and designed one with better wings, amore efficient propeller, and a strong but light engine.On December 17, 1903, these intrepid Americans madethe first manned, powered flight in history on the sanddunes of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.
1 What are the facts regarding Langley’s attempt?
2 What are the facts regarding the Wright broth-
ers’ attempt?
3 What inferences might you draw based on the
success of the Wright brothers and failure of
Langley?
Skills Assessment
Complete the Practicing Skills questions on
page 461 and the Chapter 14 Skill Reinforcement
Activity to assess your mastery of this skill.
Applying the Skill
Making Inferences Preview the biography of Mary
Harris “Mother” Jones on page 456, and then answer
these questions.
1. What kind of work did Jones’s husband do before
he died?
2. How did Jones travel to West Virginia while work-
ing as an organizer for the United Mine Workers?
3. Based on these facts, what inference can you make
about Mary Jones? What inference can you make
about how the people in the camps felt about her?
Glencoe’s Skillbuilder Interactive Workbook
CD-ROM, Level 2, provides instruction and
practice in key social studies skills.
First flight at Kitty Hawk, December 17, 1903
MakingInferences
442 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
Linking the Nation In 1865 the United States had about 35,000 miles of railroad track, almost all of it east
of the Mississippi River. After the Civil War, railroad construction expanded dramati-
cally, linking the distant regions of the nation in a transportation network. By 1900 the
United States, now a booming industrial power, boasted over 200,000 miles of track.
At Promontory Summit, Utah, on May 10, 1869, hundreds of spectators gathered to
watch a historic event. Dignitaries from the East and the West met to hammer gold and sil-
ver spikes into the final rails that would join two great railroad lines—the Union Pacific and
Central Pacific—and span the entire country.
Telegraph offices around the country stood ready to receive news that the last spike had
been driven. When the news arrived, bells pealed across the nation, and even the Liberty
Bell was rung. In Chicago a seven-mile procession paraded through the streets, and the
pealings of church bells resonated throughout the nation’s small towns. General Grenville
Dodge, who had overseen part of the construction, observed:
“The trains pulled up facing each other, each crowded with workmen who sought advan-
tageous positions to witness the ceremonies. . . . The officers and invited guests formed on
each side of the track. . . . Prayer was offered; a number of spikes were driven in the two
adjoining rails . . . and thus the two roads were welded into one great trunk line from the
Atlantic to the Pacific.”—quoted in Mine Eyes Have Seen
The Railroads
Main IdeaAfter the Civil War, the rapid construction
of railroads accelerated the nation’s
industrialization and linked the country
together.
Key Terms and NamesPacific Railway Act, Grenville Dodge,
Leland Stanford, Cornelius Vanderbilt,
time zone, land grant, Jay Gould, Crédit
Mobilier, James J. Hill
Reading StrategyOrganizing As you read about the devel-
opment of a nationwide rail network,
complete a graphic organizer similar to
the one below listing the effects of this rail
network on the nation.
Reading Objectives• Discuss ways in which the railroads
spurred industrial growth.
• Analyze how the railroads were
financed and how they grew.
Section ThemeIndividual Action The railroads pro-
vided new ways for some Americans to
amass wealth.
1869
First transcontinental
railroad completed
✦ 1875 ✦ 1885✦ 1870 ✦ 1880
1872
Crédit Mobilier scandal
takes place
1873
First direct rail service between
New York and Chicago begins
1883
Time zones instituted
Effects
Nationwide Rail
Network
Grenville Dodge
Engineering Victory The Union Pacific and Central Pacific were joined near
Ogden, Utah. The last spike driven was made of gold. It was quickly removed and
kept as a symbol. What did the event mean for the nation’s commerce?
History
The railroad boom began in 1862 when President
Abraham Lincoln signed the Pacific Railway Act.This act provided for the construction of a transconti-
nental railroad by two corporations, the Union
Pacific and the Central Pacific railroad companies.
To encourage rapid construction, the government
offered each company land along its right-of-way.
Feverish competition between the two companies
developed, as each sought to obtain as much public
land and money as possible.
The Union Pacific and Grenville Dodge Under
the direction of engineer Grenville Dodge, a former
Union general, the Union Pacific began pushing
westward from Omaha, Nebraska, in 1865.
The laborers faced blizzards in the mountains,
scorching heat in the desert, and sometimes angry
Native Americans. Labor, money, and engineering
problems plagued the supervisors of the project. As
Dodge observed:
“At one time we were using at least ten thousand
animals, and most of the time from eight to ten thou-
sand laborers. . . . To supply one mile of track with
material and supplies required about forty cars. . . .
Everything—rails, ties, bridging, fastenings, all
railway supplies, fuel for locomotives and trains, and
supplies for men and animals on the entire work—
had to be transported from the Missouri River.”—quoted in The Growth of the American Republic
The railroad workers included Civil War veterans,
new immigrants from Ireland recruited especially for
the task, frustrated miners and farmers, cooks, adven-
turers, and ex-convicts. At the height of the project, the
Union Pacific employed about 10,000 workers. While
most of the laborers camped along the line, about one-
fourth of them slept three-deep in bunk beds on rolling
boarding cars. Camp life was rough, dirty, and danger-
ous, with lots of gambling, hard drinking, and fighting.
The Big Four and the Central Pacific The Central
Pacific Railroad began as the dream of engineer
Theodore Dehone Judah, who convinced the
California legislature to organize a state railroad con-
vention to support his idea. He sold stock in his
fledgling Central Pacific Railroad Company to four
Sacramento merchants: grocer Leland Stanford, shop
owner Charley Crocker, and hardware store owners
Mark Hopkins and Collis P. Huntington.
These so-called “Big Four” eventually made huge
fortunes from their investment. Leland Stanford
became governor of California and later served as aUnited States senator after founding StanfordUniversity in 1885.
Because of a shortage of labor in California, theCentral Pacific Railroad hired about 10,000 workersfrom China. All the equipment—rails, cars, locomo-tives, and machinery—was shipped from the East,either around Cape Horn at the tip of SouthAmerica or over the Isthmus of Panama in CentralAmerica.
Evaluating How did the supply dif-
ficulties of the Union and Central Railroads differ?
Railroads Spur GrowthThe transcontinental railroad was the first of many
lines that began to crisscross the nation after the CivilWar. This expansion spurred American industrialgrowth. By linking the nation, railroads helpedincrease the size of markets for many products. Hugeconsumers themselves, the railroads also stimulatedthe economy by spending extraordinary amounts ofmoney on steel, coal, timber, and other necessities.
Linking Other Lines In the early 1800s, most rail-roads had been built to promote specific cities or toserve local needs. By 1865 hundreds of small
unconnected lines existed.The challenge for easterncapitalists was to create asingle rail transportationsystem from this maze ofsmall companies.
Railroad consolidationproceeded rapidly from1865 to 1900. Large raillines took over about 400small railroads, and by1890 the Pennsylvania Rail-road was a consolidationof 73 smaller companies.Eventually seven giant systems with terminals inmajor cities and scores of branches reaching into thecountryside controlled most rail traffic.
One of the most famous and successful railroadconsolidators was Cornelius Vanderbilt, a formerboat captain who had built the largest steamboatfleet in America. By 1869 Vanderbilt had purchasedand merged three short New York railroads to formthe New York Central, running from New York Cityto Buffalo. Within four years he had extended hiscontrol over lines all the way to Chicago, whichenabled him to offer the first direct rail servicebetween New York City and Chicago. In 1871Vanderbilt began construction of New York’s GrandCentral terminal.
The Benefits of a National System Before the1880s each community set its clocks by the sun’sposition in the sky at high noon. At noon in Chicago,for example, it was 12:50 P.M. in Washington, D.C.,12:09 P.M. in Louisville, Kentucky, and 11:41 A.M. inSt. Paul, Minnesota. Local time interfered with trainscheduling and at times even threatened passengersafety. When two trains traveled on the same track,collisions could result from scheduling errors causedby variations in time.
To make rail service safer and more reliable, in1883 the American Railway Association divided thecountry into four time zones in regions where thesame time was kept. The federal government ratifiedthis change in 1918.
Large integrated railroad systems benefited thenation. They were able to shift cars from one sectionof the country to another according to seasonal needsand in order to speed long-distance transportation.At the same time, new locomotive technology andthe introduction of air brakes enabled railroads toput longer and heavier trains on their lines. The newrail systems, along with more powerful locomotives,
Reading Check
The Trans-Siberian Railroad
Nearly 50 years after Americans completed their
transcontinental railroad, the Russians hammered the
final spike into their own cross-country rail line. Begun in
1891 and completed in 1916, the Trans-Siberian Railroad
was the longest in the world, running nearly 5,800 miles
(9,330 km) from Moscow in the west to Vladivostok on
the Sea of Japan in the east. Like the American railroads,
the Trans-Siberian line
opened up the way for
trade and settlement
throughout Russia’s fron-
tier—an arctic, windswept
land known as Siberia.
How might the construc-tion of a railroad affecttowns along the line? Trans-Siberian
Railroad
1,000 kilometers0Two-point Equidistant projection
1,000 miles0
N
SE
W
110°E
30°N
50°N
RU S S I A
Vladivostok
Moscow
Student WebActivity Visit theAmerican Vision Website at tav.glencoe.comand click on StudentWeb Activities—Chapter 14 for anactivity on industrialization.
HISTORY
444 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
became governor of California and later served as aUnited States senator after founding StanfordUniversity in 1885.
Because of a shortage of labor in California, theCentral Pacific Railroad hired about 10,000 workersfrom China. All the equipment—rails, cars, locomo-tives, and machinery—was shipped from the East,either around Cape Horn at the tip of SouthAmerica or over the Isthmus of Panama in CentralAmerica.
Evaluating How did the supply dif-
ficulties of the Union and Central Railroads differ?
Railroads Spur GrowthThe transcontinental railroad was the first of many
lines that began to crisscross the nation after the CivilWar. This expansion spurred American industrialgrowth. By linking the nation, railroads helpedincrease the size of markets for many products. Hugeconsumers themselves, the railroads also stimulatedthe economy by spending extraordinary amounts ofmoney on steel, coal, timber, and other necessities.
Linking Other Lines In the early 1800s, most rail-roads had been built to promote specific cities or toserve local needs. By 1865 hundreds of small
unconnected lines existed.The challenge for easterncapitalists was to create asingle rail transportationsystem from this maze ofsmall companies.
Railroad consolidationproceeded rapidly from1865 to 1900. Large raillines took over about 400small railroads, and by1890 the Pennsylvania Rail-road was a consolidationof 73 smaller companies.Eventually seven giant systems with terminals inmajor cities and scores of branches reaching into thecountryside controlled most rail traffic.
One of the most famous and successful railroadconsolidators was Cornelius Vanderbilt, a formerboat captain who had built the largest steamboatfleet in America. By 1869 Vanderbilt had purchasedand merged three short New York railroads to formthe New York Central, running from New York Cityto Buffalo. Within four years he had extended hiscontrol over lines all the way to Chicago, whichenabled him to offer the first direct rail servicebetween New York City and Chicago. In 1871Vanderbilt began construction of New York’s GrandCentral terminal.
The Benefits of a National System Before the1880s each community set its clocks by the sun’sposition in the sky at high noon. At noon in Chicago,for example, it was 12:50 P.M. in Washington, D.C.,12:09 P.M. in Louisville, Kentucky, and 11:41 A.M. inSt. Paul, Minnesota. Local time interfered with trainscheduling and at times even threatened passengersafety. When two trains traveled on the same track,collisions could result from scheduling errors causedby variations in time.
To make rail service safer and more reliable, in1883 the American Railway Association divided thecountry into four time zones in regions where thesame time was kept. The federal government ratifiedthis change in 1918.
Large integrated railroad systems benefited thenation. They were able to shift cars from one sectionof the country to another according to seasonal needsand in order to speed long-distance transportation.At the same time, new locomotive technology andthe introduction of air brakes enabled railroads toput longer and heavier trains on their lines. The newrail systems, along with more powerful locomotives,
Reading Check
The Trans-Siberian Railroad
Nearly 50 years after Americans completed their
transcontinental railroad, the Russians hammered the
final spike into their own cross-country rail line. Begun in
1891 and completed in 1916, the Trans-Siberian Railroad
was the longest in the world, running nearly 5,800 miles
(9,330 km) from Moscow in the west to Vladivostok on
the Sea of Japan in the east. Like the American railroads,
the Trans-Siberian line
opened up the way for
trade and settlement
throughout Russia’s fron-
tier—an arctic, windswept
land known as Siberia.
How might the construc-tion of a railroad affecttowns along the line? Trans-Siberian
Railroad
1,000 kilometers0Two-point Equidistant projection
1,000 miles0
N
SE
W
110°E
30°N
50°N
RU S S I A
Vladivostok
Moscow
Student WebActivity Visit theAmerican Vision Website at tav.glencoe.comand click on StudentWeb Activities—Chapter 14 for anactivity on industrialization.
HISTORY
444 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
Lambert Equal-Area projection600 kilometers0
600 miles0
N
SEW
80°W
70°W
110°W
120°W
50°N
40°N
30°N
20°N
Gulf of Mexico
ATLaNTic
Ocean
PaCIFic
Ocean
Boston
Chicago
San Francisco Washington, D.C.
New York City
Railroads, 1870 and 1890
1. Interpreting Maps What part of the United States saw
the greatest expansion in rail lines by 1890?
2. Applying Geography Skills In which time zone did the
Central Pacific originate?
Source: Historical Statistics of the United States:Colonial Times to 1970.
Tota
l Mile
s o
f R
ailr
oad
Op
erat
ing
(in
th
ou
san
ds)
175
150
125
100
75
50
25
0
Miles of Track, 1870–1890
189018851880
Year18751870
Pacific Time ZoneMountain Time ZoneCentral Time ZoneEastern Time ZoneRailroads built by 1870Railroads built by 1890
*Time zones and borders shown as of 1890
CHAPTER 14 Industrialization 445
made railroad operation so efficient that the average
rate per mile for a ton of freight dropped from two
cents in 1860 to three-fourths of a cent in 1900.
The nationwide rail network also helped unite
Americans in different regions. Looking back at a
quarter century of railroad travel, the Omaha DailyRepublican observed in 1883 that railroads had
“made the people of the country homogeneous,
breaking through the peculiarities and provin-
cialisms which marked separate and unmingling
sections.” This was, perhaps, an overstatement, but
it recognized a significant contribution that railroads
made to the nation.
Explaining Why did the American
Railway Association divide the country into four time zones?
The Land Grant System Building and operating railroad lines, especially
across the vast unsettled regions of the West, often
required more money than most private investors
could raise on their own. To encourage railroad con-
struction, the federal government gave land grantsto many railroad companies. Railroads would then
sell the land to settlers, real estate companies, and
other businesses to raise the money they needed to
build the railroad.
In the 1850s, the federal government granted indi-
vidual states over 28 million acres of public lands to
give to the railroads. After the Pacific Railway Acts of
1862 and 1864, the government gave the land directly
to the railroad companies.
During the 1850s and 1860s, the federal land grant
system awarded railroad companies over 120 mil-
lion acres of land, an area larger than New England,
New York, and Pennsylvania combined. Several rail-
road companies, including the Union Pacific and
the Central Pacific, earned enough money from the
government’s generous land grants to cover much of
the cost of building their lines.
Summarizing How did the govern-
ment help finance railroads?
Robber BaronsThe great wealth many railroad entrepreneurs
acquired in the late 1800s led to accusations that they
had built their fortunes by swindling investors and
Reading Check
Reading Check
446 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
Writing About History
Checking for Understanding
1. Define: time zone, land grant.
2. Identify: Pacific Railway Act, Grenville
Dodge, Leland Stanford, Cornelius
Vanderbilt, Jay Gould, Crédit Mobilier,
James J. Hill.
3. Explain the provisions of the Pacific
Railway Act.
Reviewing Themes
4. Individual Action How did Grenville
Dodge contribute to the economic
growth of the United States in the late
1800s?
Critical Thinking
5. Synthesizing How did railroad expan-
sion in the United States lead to indus-
trial growth?
6. Organizing Use a graphic organizer
similar to the one below to list the
different ways that railroads were
financed.
Analyzing Visuals
7. Examining Maps and Graphs Study
the map and the graph on page 445.
Then make up a quiz of at least five
questions based on the information
presented.
8. Persuasive Writing Take on the role
of an employee of a major railroad
corporation. Your job assignment is
to write an advertisement to recruit
workers for your corporation. After
writing the advertisement, present it
to your class.
taxpayers, bribing government officials, and cheating
on their contracts and debts. The person with proba-
bly the worst reputation for this kind of activity was
Jay Gould, who often practiced “insider trading.” He
used information he received as a railroad owner to
manipulate stock prices to his benefit.
Bribery occurred frequently in this era, partly
because the state and federal governments were so
deeply entangled in funding the railroads. Railroad
investors quickly discovered that they could make
more money by acquiring government land grants
than by operating the railroad. As a result, many
investors bribed members of Congress and the state
legislatures to vote for more grants.
The Crédit Mobilier Scandal The corruption in the
railroad industry became public in 1872 when the
Crédit Mobilier scandal erupted. Crédit Mobilierwas a construction company set up by several stock-
holders of the Union Pacific, including Oakes Ames,
a member of Congress. Acting for both the Union
Pacific and Crédit Mobilier, the investors signed con-
tracts with themselves. Crédit Mobilier greatly over-
charged Union Pacific for the work it did, and since
the same investors controlled both companies, the
railroad agreed to pay the inflated bills.
By the time the Union Pacific railroad was com-
pleted, the investors had made several million dol-
lars, but the railroad itself had used up its federal
grants and was almost bankrupt. To convince
Congress to give the railroad more grants, Ames gave
other members of Congress shares in the Union
Pacific at a price well below their market value.
During the election campaign of 1872, a disgrun-
tled associate of Ames sent a letter to the New York
Sun listing the members of Congress who had
accepted shares. The scandal led to an investigation
that implicated several members of Congress, includ-
ing Speaker of the House James G. Blaine and James
Garfield, who later became president. It also revealed
that Vice President Schuyler Colfax had accepted
stock from the railroad.
The Great Northern The Crédit Mobilier scandal
provided sensational newspaper headlines. It created
the impression that all railroad entrepreneurs were
robber barons—people who loot an industry and give
nothing back—but the term was not always deserved.
One railroad entrepreneur who was clearly not a
robber baron was James J. Hill. Hill built and oper-
ated the Great Northern Railroad from St. Paul,
Minnesota, to Everett, Washington, without any fed-
eral land grants or subsidies. He built the Great
Northern across good land, carefully planning his
route to pass by towns in the region. To increase busi-
ness, he offered low fares to settlers who homesteaded
along his route. He then identified American products
that were in demand in China, including cotton, tex-
tiles, and flour, and arranged to haul those goods to
Washington for shipment to Asia. This enabled the
railroad to earn money by hauling goods both east and
west, instead of simply sending lumber and farm
products east and coming back empty, as many other
railroads did. Operating without government subsi-
dies or land grants, the Great Northern became the
most successful transcontinental railroad and the only
one that was not eventually forced into bankruptcy.
Describing How was the Great
Northern different from other railroads of the time?
Reading Check
Ways Railroads
Were Financed
In the 1860s, the oil industry in the United States was highly competitive. One highly efficient
company was Standard Oil, owned by John D. Rockefeller and his associates. Because his company
shipped so much oil, Rockefeller was able to negotiate rebates, or refunds, from railroads that wanted
his business. This gave his company an advantage, and he began to pressure other oil companies to
sell out to him.
Oil producer Franklin Tarbell pledged never to surrender. Tarbell’s daughter Ida later recalled her
father’s indignation over Rockefeller’s maneuvers:
“It was as if somebody had tried to crowd me off the road. . . . There were rules, you couldn’t use
the road unless you obeyed those rules. . . . The railroads—so said my father—ran through the valley
by the consent of the people; they had given them a right of way. The road on which I trotted was a
right of way. One man had the same right as another, but the railroads had given to one something
they would not give to another. . . . The strong wrested from the railroads the privilege of preying
upon the weak.”—quoted in All in the Day’s Work
Big Business
Main IdeaAfter the Civil War, big business assumeda more prominent role in American life.
Key Terms and Namescorporation, stockholder, stock,economies of scale, fixed costs, operatingcosts, pool, Andrew Carnegie, Bessemerprocess, vertical integration, horizontalintegration, monopoly, trust, holdingcompany
Reading StrategyOrganizing As you read about the rise ofcorporations in the United States, com-plete a graphic organizer similar to theone below to describe the steps largebusiness owners took to weaken or elimi-nate competition.
Reading Objectives• Analyze how large corporations came
to dominate American business.• Evaluate how Andrew Carnegie’s inno-
vations transformed the steel industry.
Section Theme Economic Factors Large national corpo-rations formed in the United States in themid-1800s and contributed to greaterproduction.
✦1895✦1865 ✦1885
CHAPTER 14 Industrialization 447
1862John D. Rockefellerbuys first oil refinery
The Rise of Big BusinessBefore the Civil War, the personal wealth of a few people operating in partnership
financed most businesses, including many early factories. Most manufacturing enterpriseswere very small. By 1900 everything had changed. Big businesses dominated the economy,operating vast complexes of factories, warehouses, offices, and distribution facilities.
1875Andrew Carnegie openssteel mill in Pittsburgh
1879Woolworth’s chainstore opens
1882Dow Jones &Company founded
1901J.P. Morgan formsU.S. Steel
Slashed prices
temporarily
✦1875
In the 1860s, the oil industry in the United States was highly competitive. One highly efficient
company was Standard Oil, owned by John D. Rockefeller and his associates. Because his company
shipped so much oil, Rockefeller was able to negotiate rebates, or refunds, from railroads that wanted
his business. This gave his company an advantage, and he began to pressure other oil companies to
sell out to him.
Oil producer Franklin Tarbell pledged never to surrender. Tarbell’s daughter Ida later recalled her
father’s indignation over Rockefeller’s maneuvers:
“It was as if somebody had tried to crowd me off the road. . . . There were rules, you couldn’t use
the road unless you obeyed those rules. . . . The railroads—so said my father—ran through the valley
by the consent of the people; they had given them a right of way. The road on which I trotted was a
right of way. One man had the same right as another, but the railroads had given to one something
they would not give to another. . . . The strong wrested from the railroads the privilege of preying
upon the weak.”—quoted in All in the Day’s Work
Big Business
Main IdeaAfter the Civil War, big business assumeda more prominent role in American life.
Key Terms and Namescorporation, stockholder, stock,economies of scale, fixed costs, operatingcosts, pool, Andrew Carnegie, Bessemerprocess, vertical integration, horizontalintegration, monopoly, trust, holdingcompany
Reading StrategyOrganizing As you read about the rise ofcorporations in the United States, com-plete a graphic organizer similar to theone below to describe the steps largebusiness owners took to weaken or elimi-nate competition.
Reading Objectives• Analyze how large corporations came
to dominate American business.• Evaluate how Andrew Carnegie’s inno-
vations transformed the steel industry.
Section Theme Economic Factors Large national corpo-rations formed in the United States in themid-1800s and contributed to greaterproduction.
✦1895✦1865 ✦1885
CHAPTER 14 Industrialization 447
1862John D. Rockefellerbuys first oil refinery
The Rise of Big BusinessBefore the Civil War, the personal wealth of a few people operating in partnership
financed most businesses, including many early factories. Most manufacturing enterpriseswere very small. By 1900 everything had changed. Big businesses dominated the economy,operating vast complexes of factories, warehouses, offices, and distribution facilities.
1875Andrew Carnegie openssteel mill in Pittsburgh
1879Woolworth’s chainstore opens
1882Dow Jones &Company founded
1901J.P. Morgan formsU.S. Steel
Slashed prices
temporarily
✦1875
448 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
ECONOMICS
The Role of Corporations Big business would
not have been possible without the corporation. A
corporation is an organization owned by many
people but treated by law as though it were a single
person. A corporation can own property, pay taxes,
make contracts, and sue and be sued. The people
who own the corporation are called stockholdersbecause they own shares of ownership called stock.Issuing stock allows a corporation to raise large
amounts of money for big projects while spreading
out the financial risk.
Before the 1830s, there were few corporations in
the United States because entrepreneurs had to con-
vince a state legislature to issue them a charter.
Beginning in the 1830s, however, states began pass-
ing general incorporation laws, allowing companies
to become corporations and issue stock without char-
ters from the legislature.
Economies of Scale With the money they raised
from the sale of stock, corporations could invest in
new technologies, hire a large workforce, and pur-
chase many machines, greatly increasing their effi-
ciency. This enabled them to achieve what is called
economies of scale, in which corporations make
goods more cheaply because they produce so much
so quickly using large manufacturing facilities.
All businesses have two kinds of costs, fixed costs
and operating (or variable) costs. Fixed costs are
costs a company has to pay, whether or not it is oper-
ating. For example, a company would have to pay its
loans, mortgages, and taxes, regardless of whether it
was operating. Operating costs are costs that occur
when running a company, such as paying wages and
shipping charges and buying raw materials and
other supplies.
The small manufacturing companies that had been
typical before the Civil War usually had very low fixed
costs but very high operating costs. If sales dropped, it
was cheaper to shut down and wait for better eco-
nomic conditions. By comparison, big companies had
very high fixed costs because it took so much money
to build and maintain a factory. Compared to their
fixed costs, big businesses had low operating costs.
Wages and transportation costs were such a small
part of a corporation’s costs that it made sense to
keep operating, even in a recession.
In these circumstances, big corporations had sev-
eral advantages. They could produce goods more
cheaply and efficiently. They could continue to oper-
ate in poor economic times by cutting prices to
increase sales, rather than shutting down. Many were
also able to negotiate rebates from the railroads, thus
lowering their operating costs even further.
Small businesses with high operating costs found
it difficult to compete against large corporations, and
many were forced out of business. At the time, many
people criticized corporations for cutting prices and
negotiating rebates. They believed the corporations
were behaving unethically by using their wealth to
drive small companies out of business. In many
cases, the changing nature of business organization
and the new importance of fixed costs that caused
competition to become so severe forced many small
companies out of business.
Describing What factors led to the
rise of big business in the United States?
The Consolidation of IndustryMany corporate leaders did not like the intense
competition that had been forced on them. Although
falling prices benefited consumers, they cut into prof-
its. To stop prices from falling, many companies
organized pools, or agreements to maintain prices at
a certain level.
American courts and legislatures were suspicious
of pools because they interfered with competition
and property rights. As a result, companies that
formed pools had no legal protection and could not
enforce their agreements in court. Pools generally did
not last long. They broke apart whenever one mem-
ber cut prices to steal the market share from another,
which then allowed competition to resume. By the
1870s, competition had reduced many industries to a
few large and highly efficient corporations.
Andrew Carnegie and Steel The remarkable life of
Andrew Carnegie illustrates many of the different fac-
tors that led to industrialism and the rise of big busi-
ness in the United States. He was born in Scotland, the
son of a poor hand weaver who emigrated to the
United States in 1848. At age 12, Carnegie went to
work as a bobbin boy in a textile factory earning $1.20
per week. After two years, he became a messenger in a
telegraph office, then served as private secretary to
Thomas Scott, a superintendent and later president
of the Pennsylvania Railroad. Carnegie’s energy
impressed Scott, and when Scott was promoted,
Carnegie succeeded him as superintendent.
As a railroad supervisor, Carnegie knew that he
could make a lot of money by investing in companies
that served the railroad industry. He bought shares in
iron mills and factories that made sleeping cars and
Reading Check
locomotives. He also invested in a company that built
railroad bridges. In his early 30s, he was earning
$50,000 per year, and he decided to quit his job with
the railroad to concentrate on his own business affairs.
As part of his business activities, Carnegie fre-
quently traveled to Europe to sell railroad bonds. On
one trip, he met the English inventor, Sir Henry
Bessemer, who had invented a new process for mak-
ing high quality steel efficiently and cheaply. After
meeting Bessemer, Carnegie decided to concentrate
his investments in the steel industry. He opened a
steel company in Pittsburgh in 1875 and quickly
adapted his steel mills to use the Bessemer process.Carnegie often boasted about how cheaply he could
produce steel:
“Two pounds of iron stone mined upon Lake
Superior and transported nine hundred miles to
Pittsburgh; one pound and one-half of coal mined and
manufactured into coke, and transported to Pittsburgh;
one-half pound of lime, mined and transported to
Pittsburgh; a small amount of manganese ore mined in
Virginia and brought to Pittsburgh—and these four
pounds of materials manufactured into one pound of
steel, for which the consumer pays one cent.”—quoted in The Growth of the American Republic
Vertical and Horizontal Integration To increase
manufacturing efficiency even further, Carnegie took
the next step in building a big business. He did this
by beginning the vertical integration of the steel
industry. A vertically integrated company owns all of
the different businesses on which it depends for its
operation. Instead of paying companies for coal,
lime, and iron, Carnegie’s company bought coal
mines, limestone quarries, and iron ore fields.
Vertical integration saved companies money while
enabling big companies to become even bigger.
Successful business leaders like Carnegie also
pushed for horizontal integration, or combining
many firms engaged in the same type of business into
one large corporation. Horizontal integration took
place frequently as companies competed. When a
company began to lose market share, it would often
sell out to competitors to create a larger organization.
By 1880, for example, a series of buyouts had enabled
Rockefeller’s Standard Oil to gain control of approxi-
mately 90 percent of the oil refining industry in the
United States. When a single company achieves con-
trol of an entire market, it becomes a monopoly.Many Americans feared monopolies because they
believed that a company with a monopoly could
charge whatever it wanted for its products. Others,
however, supported monopolies. They believed that
monopolies had to keep prices low because raising
prices would encourage competitors to reappear and
offer the products for a lower price. In some indus-
tries companies had a virtual monopoly in the United
States but were competing on a global scale. Standard
Oil, for example, came very close to having a monop-
oly in the United States, but competition with other
CHAPTER 14 Industrialization 449
Vertical Integration Horizontal Integration
Independent Oil Refineries
U.S. Oil Company
Purchase of CompetingCompanies in Same Industry
Cattle
Slaughterhouse
Refrigerated Railroad Cars
Purchase of Companiesat All Levels of Production
Cooled Warehouses
Meat Packing Plants
Delivery Wagons
Ace Meat
Industries
Horizontal and vertical integration were the two
most common business combinations in the late
1800s.
Evaluating Which combination do you think would
yield the most efficient business? Why?
oil companies throughout the world forced theStandard Oil Company to keep its prices low in thelate 1800s and early 1900s.
Trusts By the late 1800s, many Americans hadgrown suspicious of large corporations and fearedthe power of monopolies. To preserve competitionand prevent horizontal integration, many statesmade it illegal for one company to own stock inanother without specific permission from the statelegislature. In 1882 Standard Oil formed the firsttrust, a new way of merging businesses that did notviolate the laws against owning other companies. Atrust is a legal concept that allows one person to man-age another person’s property. The person who man-ages another person’s property is called a trustee.
Instead of buying a company outright, StandardOil had stockholders give their stocks to a group ofStandard Oil trustees. In exchange, the stockholdersreceived shares in the trust, which entitled them to aportion of the trust’s profits. Since the trustees didnot own the stock but were merely managing it, they
were not violating any laws. This arrangementenabled the trustees to control a group of companiesas if they were one large merged company.
Holding Companies Beginning in 1889 the state ofNew Jersey further accelerated the rise of big businesswith a new general incorporation law. This lawallowed corporations chartered in New Jersey to ownstock in other businesses without any need for speciallegislative action. Many companies immediately usedthe New Jersey law to create a new organizationcalled a holding company. A holding company doesnot produce anything itself. Instead, it owns the stockof companies that do produce goods. The holdingcompany controls all of the companies it owns, effec-tively merging them into one large enterprise. By 1904the United States had 318 holding companies.Together these giant corporations controlled over5,300 factories and were worth more than $7 billion.
Explaining What techniques did
corporations use to consolidate their industries?
Reading Check
450 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
MOMENTinHISTORYMOMENTinHISTORYLABOR SAVERSAmerican inventiveness andthe nation’s growing industrialmight combined to provideturn-of-the-century consumerswith an ever-increasing array ofproducts. Here, a homemakerwields an early electric vacuumcleaner. Mass-produced house-hold devices had a tremendousimpact on the lifestyles andbuying habits of millions ofmiddle-class Americans. Incities, huge shopping empo-riums replaced the cozy drygoods stores of the 1800s. Evenrural customers could buy analmost endless variety of mer-chandise from mail-order cata-logues such as Sears, Roebuckand Montgomery Ward.
oil companies throughout the world forced theStandard Oil Company to keep its prices low in thelate 1800s and early 1900s.
Trusts By the late 1800s, many Americans hadgrown suspicious of large corporations and fearedthe power of monopolies. To preserve competitionand prevent horizontal integration, many statesmade it illegal for one company to own stock inanother without specific permission from the statelegislature. In 1882 Standard Oil formed the firsttrust, a new way of merging businesses that did notviolate the laws against owning other companies. Atrust is a legal concept that allows one person to man-age another person’s property. The person who man-ages another person’s property is called a trustee.
Instead of buying a company outright, StandardOil had stockholders give their stocks to a group ofStandard Oil trustees. In exchange, the stockholdersreceived shares in the trust, which entitled them to aportion of the trust’s profits. Since the trustees didnot own the stock but were merely managing it, they
were not violating any laws. This arrangementenabled the trustees to control a group of companiesas if they were one large merged company.
Holding Companies Beginning in 1889 the state ofNew Jersey further accelerated the rise of big businesswith a new general incorporation law. This lawallowed corporations chartered in New Jersey to ownstock in other businesses without any need for speciallegislative action. Many companies immediately usedthe New Jersey law to create a new organizationcalled a holding company. A holding company doesnot produce anything itself. Instead, it owns the stockof companies that do produce goods. The holdingcompany controls all of the companies it owns, effec-tively merging them into one large enterprise. By 1904the United States had 318 holding companies.Together these giant corporations controlled over5,300 factories and were worth more than $7 billion.
Explaining What techniques did
corporations use to consolidate their industries?
Reading Check
450 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
MOMENTinHISTORYMOMENTinHISTORYLABOR SAVERSAmerican inventiveness andthe nation’s growing industrialmight combined to provideturn-of-the-century consumerswith an ever-increasing array ofproducts. Here, a homemakerwields an early electric vacuumcleaner. Mass-produced house-hold devices had a tremendousimpact on the lifestyles andbuying habits of millions ofmiddle-class Americans. Incities, huge shopping empo-riums replaced the cozy drygoods stores of the 1800s. Evenrural customers could buy analmost endless variety of mer-chandise from mail-order cata-logues such as Sears, Roebuckand Montgomery Ward.
CHAPTER 14 Industrialization 451
Writing About History
Checking for Understanding
1. Define: corporation, economies ofscale, fixed costs, operating costs, pool, vertical integration, horizontalintegration, monopoly, trust, holdingcompany.
2. Identify: stockholder, stock, AndrewCarnegie, Bessemer process.
3. List the new methods of advertisingand selling that helped push consumergoods in the late 1800s.
Reviewing Themes
4. Economic Factors What factorsallowed corporations to develop in theUnited States in the late 1800s?
Critical Thinking
5. Forming an Opinion Do you think anindividual today can rise from “rags toriches” like Andrew Carnegie did? Whyor why not?
6. Organizing Use a graphic organizerlike the one below to list ways businessleaders in the late 1800s tried to elimi-nate competition.
Analyzing Visuals
7. Analyzing Photographs Study thephotograph on page 450 of a womanusing an early electric vacuum cleaner.How would you compare this to today’svacuum cleaners? How do you thinknew mass-produced appliances affectedthe lives of women in this era?
Selling the ProductThe vast array of products that American indus-
tries churned out led retailers to look for new ways tomarket and sell goods. N.W. Ayer and Son ofPhiladelphia, for example, developed bold new for-mats for advertising. Large display ads with illustra-tions replaced the small-type line ads that had beenstandard in newspapers. By 1900 retailers werespending over $90 million a year on advertising,approximately 10 times what they had spent in 1865.Advertising attracted readers to the newest retailbusiness, the department store.
In 1877 advertisements billed John Wanamaker’snew Philadelphia department store, the Grand Depot,as the “largest space in the world devoted to retail sell-ing on a single floor.” When Wanamaker’s opened,only a handful of department stores existed in theUnited States; soon hundreds sprang up. Departmentstores changed the idea of shopping by bringing ahuge array of different products together in a large,elegant building. They created an atmosphere thatmade shopping seem glamorous and exciting.
Chain stores, a group of similar stores owned by thesame company, first appeared in the mid-1800s. In con-trast to department stores, which offered many serv-ices, chain stores focused on thrift, offering low pricesinstead of elaborate service and decor. Woolworth’s, achain store that opened in 1879, became one of themost successful retail chains in American history.
To reach the millions of people who lived in ruralareas in the late 1800s—far from chain stores or department stores—retailers began issuing
mail-order catalogs. Two of the largest mail-orderretailers were Montgomery Ward and Sears, Roebuck.Their huge catalogs, widely distributed through themail, used attractive illustrations and friendlydescriptions to advertise thousands of items for sale.
Identifying What innovations did
retailers introduce in the late 1800s to sell goods to consumers?
Reading Check
Attempts to
Eliminate Competition
The New York Stock Exchange In 1792 business-people met in New York City to establish a stockexchange—a marketplace for buying and sellingstock in companies. At first, the new stock exchangewas located under a buttonwood tree on Wall Street.
The organization took its present name, the NewYork Stock Exchange, in 1863. Huge amounts of thecapital required for the nation’s industrialization afterthe Civil War passed through the New York StockExchange.
As stock trading grew, investors across the nationneeded financial news. In 1882 Henry Charles Dowand Edward D. Jones founded Dow Jones & Company.This new company sent bulletins on theday’s business to Wall Street’s financialhouses. The day’s last deliverycontained a news sheet,which became the WallStreet Journal in July 1889.
8. Expository Writing Write a newspa-per editorial in which you explain whyentrepreneurs such as John D.Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie werea positive or a negative force on theU.S. economy in the late 1800s.
CHAPTER 14 Industrialization 451
Writing About History
Checking for Understanding
1. Define: corporation, economies ofscale, fixed costs, operating costs, pool, vertical integration, horizontalintegration, monopoly, trust, holdingcompany.
2. Identify: stockholder, stock, AndrewCarnegie, Bessemer process.
3. List the new methods of advertisingand selling that helped push consumergoods in the late 1800s.
Reviewing Themes
4. Economic Factors What factorsallowed corporations to develop in theUnited States in the late 1800s?
Critical Thinking
5. Forming an Opinion Do you think anindividual today can rise from “rags toriches” like Andrew Carnegie did? Whyor why not?
6. Organizing Use a graphic organizerlike the one below to list ways businessleaders in the late 1800s tried to elimi-nate competition.
Analyzing Visuals
7. Analyzing Photographs Study thephotograph on page 450 of a womanusing an early electric vacuum cleaner.How would you compare this to today’svacuum cleaners? How do you thinknew mass-produced appliances affectedthe lives of women in this era?
Selling the ProductThe vast array of products that American indus-
tries churned out led retailers to look for new ways tomarket and sell goods. N.W. Ayer and Son ofPhiladelphia, for example, developed bold new for-mats for advertising. Large display ads with illustra-tions replaced the small-type line ads that had beenstandard in newspapers. By 1900 retailers werespending over $90 million a year on advertising,approximately 10 times what they had spent in 1865.Advertising attracted readers to the newest retailbusiness, the department store.
In 1877 advertisements billed John Wanamaker’snew Philadelphia department store, the Grand Depot,as the “largest space in the world devoted to retail sell-ing on a single floor.” When Wanamaker’s opened,only a handful of department stores existed in theUnited States; soon hundreds sprang up. Departmentstores changed the idea of shopping by bringing ahuge array of different products together in a large,elegant building. They created an atmosphere thatmade shopping seem glamorous and exciting.
Chain stores, a group of similar stores owned by thesame company, first appeared in the mid-1800s. In con-trast to department stores, which offered many serv-ices, chain stores focused on thrift, offering low pricesinstead of elaborate service and decor. Woolworth’s, achain store that opened in 1879, became one of themost successful retail chains in American history.
To reach the millions of people who lived in ruralareas in the late 1800s—far from chain stores or department stores—retailers began issuing
mail-order catalogs. Two of the largest mail-orderretailers were Montgomery Ward and Sears, Roebuck.Their huge catalogs, widely distributed through themail, used attractive illustrations and friendlydescriptions to advertise thousands of items for sale.
Identifying What innovations did
retailers introduce in the late 1800s to sell goods to consumers?
Reading Check
Attempts to
Eliminate Competition
The New York Stock Exchange In 1792 business-people met in New York City to establish a stockexchange—a marketplace for buying and sellingstock in companies. At first, the new stock exchangewas located under a buttonwood tree on Wall Street.
The organization took its present name, the NewYork Stock Exchange, in 1863. Huge amounts of thecapital required for the nation’s industrialization afterthe Civil War passed through the New York StockExchange.
As stock trading grew, investors across the nationneeded financial news. In 1882 Henry Charles Dowand Edward D. Jones founded Dow Jones & Company.This new company sent bulletins on theday’s business to Wall Street’s financialhouses. The day’s last deliverycontained a news sheet,which became the WallStreet Journal in July 1889.
8. Expository Writing Write a newspa-per editorial in which you explain whyentrepreneurs such as John D.Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie werea positive or a negative force on theU.S. economy in the late 1800s.
452 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
Investigating Standard OilB
y the 1880s, the Standard Oil Company, under the direction of John D.
Rockefeller and his associates, had gained control of more than 90 per-
cent of the oil refining business in the United States. Did Standard Oil
use unfair tactics? The United States Industrial Commission investigated, call-
ing Rockefeller himself to testify. Rockefeller said his success was due to the
efficiency of his company. George Rice, an independent refiner from Marietta,
Ohio, told the Industrial Commission that Standard Oil’s advantage was crim-
inal collusion with the railroads. Was he right? You’re the historian.
Read the following excerpts from the Industrial Commission hearings of 1899. Then
complete the questions and activities on the next page.
John D. Rockefeller
Standard Oil stock
Question: To what advantages, or
favors, or methods of manage-
ment do you ascribe chiefly the
success of the Standard Oil
Company?
Answer [Rockefeller]: I ascribe the
success of the Standard to its con-
sistent policy to make the volume
of its business large through the
merits and cheapness of its prod-
ucts. It has spared no expense in
finding, securing, and utilizing
the best and cheapest methods of
manufacture. It has sought for the
best superintendents and work-
men and paid the best wages. It
has not hesitated to sacrifice old
machinery and old plants for new
and better ones. It has placed its
manufactories at the points
where they could supply markets
at the least expense. It has not
only sought markets for its prin-
cipal products, but for all possible
by-products, sparing no expense
in introducing them to the public.
It has not hesitated to invest mil-
lions of dollars in methods of
cheapening the gathering and
distribution of oils by pipe lines,
special cars, tank steamers, and
tank wagons. . . .
Question: What are, in your judg-
ment, the chief advantages from
industrial combinations—(a)
financially to stockholders; (b) to
the public?
Answer: All the advantages which
can be derived from a coopera-
tion of person and aggregation of
capital. . . . It is too late to argue
about advantages of industrial
combinations. They are a neces-
sity. And if Americans are to have
the privilege of extending their
business in all the States of the
Union, and into foreign countries
as well, they are a necessity on a
large scale, and require the
agency of more than one corpora-
tion. Their chief advantages are:
1. Command of necessary capital.
2. Extension of limits of business.
3. Increase the number of per-
sons interested in the business.
4. Economy in the business.
5. Improvements and economies
which are derived from knowl-
edge of many interested per-
sons of wide experience.
6. Power to give the public
improved products at less
prices and still make a profit
from stockholders.
7. Permanent work and good
wages for laborers.
Cartoon criticizing Standard Oil
CHAPTER 14 Industrialization 453
Oil derricks
Understanding the Issue1. What potential advantages could
companies like Standard Oil offer
consumers?
2. What did George Rice believe to be
the reason Standard Oil was so
successful?
3. How would you assess the credibility
of the two accounts?
Activities1. Investigate Today many industries,
unions, and special interest groups
lobby Congress for favorable legisla-
tion. What are the most powerful
groups? How do they operate?
2. Check the News Are there any com-
panies that recently have been inves-
tigated for unfair or monopolistic
practices? Collect headlines and news
articles and create a bulletin board
display.
I am a citizen of the United States.
. . . Producer of petroleum for
more than 30 years, and a refiner
of same for 20 years, but my refin-
ery has been shut down during
the past 3 years, owing to the
powerful and all-prevailing
machinations of the Standard Oil
Trust, in criminal collusion and
conspiracy with the railroads to
destroy my business of 20 years of
patient industry, toil, and money
in building up, wholly by and
through unlawful freight discrim-
inations. I have been driven from
pillar to post, from one railway
line to another, for 20 years, in the
absolutely vain endeavor to get
equal and just freight rates with
the Standard Oil Trust, so as to be
able to run my refinery at any-
thing approaching a profit, but
which I have been utterly
unable to do. I have had to conse-
quently shut down, with my busi-
ness absolutely ruined and my
refinery idle. This has been a very
sad, bitter, and ruinous experi-
ence for me to endure, but I have
endeavored to the best of my cir-
cumstances and ability to combat
it the utmost I could for many a
long waiting year, expecting relief
through the honest and proper
execution of our laws, which have
as yet, however, never come. . . .
Outside of rebates or freight dis-
criminations I had no show with
the Standard Oil trust, because of
their unlawfully acquired monop-
oly, by which they could tem-
porarily cut only my customers’
prices, and below cost, leaving the
balance of the town, nine-tenths,
uncut. This they can easily do
without any appreciable harm to
their general trade, and thus effec-
tually wipe out all competition, as
fully set forth. Standard Oil prices
generally were so high that I
could sell my goods 2 to 3 cents a
gallon below their prices and
make a nice profit, but these sav-
age attacks and cuts upon my
customers’ goods, and their con-
sequent loss, plainly showed
them their power for evil, and the
uselessness to contend against
such odds, and they would buy
no more of my oil. . . .
1877Great RailroadStrike
454 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
✦1885 ✦1905
Working in the United StatesLife for workers in industrial America was difficult. As machines replaced skilled
labor, work became monotonous. Workers had to perform highly specific, repetitivetasks and could take little pride in their work. In addition, working conditions were
On September 6, 1869, hundreds of miners’ wives and children heard the repeated shrill blasts of
the Avondale Mine’s whistle, which signaled an accident. The families ran to the mine’s entry and
beheld a terrifying sight: hot smoke billowing from the mine shaft.
The owners of the Avondale Coal Mine in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, had not built a second
entrance to their mine. Without an escape route, the 179 miners trapped below soon died. Songs to
commemorate the disaster later gave voice to the silenced victims:
“And as their souls ascended
To God who gave them breath
They plead against the company
Whose greed had caused their death”Following the deaths at Avondale, John Siney, an Irish immigrant and union leader, urged his fellow
miners to unionize:
“Men, if you must die with your boots on, die for your families, your homes, your country, but do
not longer consent to die like rats in a trap. . . .”—quoted in Labor’s Untold Story
Unions
Main IdeaIn an attempt to improve their workingconditions, industrial workers cametogether to form unions in the late 1800s.
Key Terms and Namesdeflation, trade union, industrial union,blacklist, lockout, Marxism, Knights ofLabor, arbitration, injunction, closed shop
Reading StrategySequencing As you read about theincrease of American labor unions in thelate 1800s, complete a time line similarto the one below by filling in the inci-dents of labor unrest discussed and theresults of each incident.
Reading Objectives• Describe industrial working conditions
in the United States in the late 1800s.• List the barriers to labor union growth.
Section ThemeIndividual Action People like SamuelGompers and Mother Jones strove to bal-ance the power of corporations with theneeds of workers.
✦1875 ✦1895
1886American Federationof Labor founded
1886Riot in Chicago’sHaymarket Square
1894Pullman Strike
1903Women’s Trade UnionLeague founded
1877
1877Great RailroadStrike
454 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
✦1885 ✦1905
Working in the United StatesLife for workers in industrial America was difficult. As machines replaced skilled
labor, work became monotonous. Workers had to perform highly specific, repetitivetasks and could take little pride in their work. In addition, working conditions were
On September 6, 1869, hundreds of miners’ wives and children heard the repeated shrill blasts of
the Avondale Mine’s whistle, which signaled an accident. The families ran to the mine’s entry and
beheld a terrifying sight: hot smoke billowing from the mine shaft.
The owners of the Avondale Coal Mine in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, had not built a second
entrance to their mine. Without an escape route, the 179 miners trapped below soon died. Songs to
commemorate the disaster later gave voice to the silenced victims:
“And as their souls ascended
To God who gave them breath
They plead against the company
Whose greed had caused their death”Following the deaths at Avondale, John Siney, an Irish immigrant and union leader, urged his fellow
miners to unionize:
“Men, if you must die with your boots on, die for your families, your homes, your country, but do
not longer consent to die like rats in a trap. . . .”—quoted in Labor’s Untold Story
Unions
Main IdeaIn an attempt to improve their workingconditions, industrial workers cametogether to form unions in the late 1800s.
Key Terms and Namesdeflation, trade union, industrial union,blacklist, lockout, Marxism, Knights ofLabor, arbitration, injunction, closed shop
Reading StrategySequencing As you read about theincrease of American labor unions in thelate 1800s, complete a time line similarto the one below by filling in the inci-dents of labor unrest discussed and theresults of each incident.
Reading Objectives• Describe industrial working conditions
in the United States in the late 1800s.• List the barriers to labor union growth.
Section ThemeIndividual Action People like SamuelGompers and Mother Jones strove to bal-ance the power of corporations with theneeds of workers.
✦1875 ✦1895
1886American Federationof Labor founded
1886Riot in Chicago’sHaymarket Square
1894Pullman Strike
1903Women’s Trade UnionLeague founded
1877
often unhealthy and dangerous. Workers breathed inlint, dust, and toxic fumes. Heavy machines lackingsafety devices caused a high number of injuries.
Despite the difficult working conditions, industri-alism brought about a dramatic rise in the standardof living. While only a few entrepreneurs becamerich, real wages earned by the average worker roseby about 50 percent between 1860 and 1890.
Despite the rise in the standard of living, theuneven division of income between the wealthy andthe working class caused resentment among workers.In 1900 the average industrial worker made 22¢ perhour and worked 59 hours per week.
At the same time, an economic phenomenon ofthe late 1800s made relations between workers andemployers even more difficult. Between 1865 and1897, the United States experienced deflation, or arise in the value of money. Throughout the late1800s, deflation caused prices to fall, whichincreased the buying power of workers’ wages.Although companies cut wages regularly in the late1800s, prices fell even faster, so that wages wereactually still going up in buying power. Workers,however, believed that companies wanted to paythem less money for the samework. Eventually, many work-ers decided that the only wayto improve their working con-ditions was to organize unions.With a union, they could bar-gain collectively to negotiatehigher wages and better work-ing conditions.
Describing What aspects of
industrial life caused frustration for
workers in the late 1800s?
Early UnionsThere were two basic types
of industrial workers in theUnited States in the 1800s—craft workers and commonlaborers. Craft workers hadspecial skills and training.They included machinists, ironmolders, stonecutters, glass-blowers, shoemakers, printers,carpenters, and many others.Craft workers generallyreceived higher wages and
had more control over how they organized their timeon the shop floor. Common laborers had few skillsand received lower wages.
In the 1830s, as industrialism began to spread,craft workers began to form trade unions—unionslimited to people with specific skills. By 1873 therewere 32 national trade unions in the United States.Among the largest and most successful were the IronMolders’ International Union, the InternationalTypographical Union, and the Knights of St.Crispin—the shoemakers’ union.
Industry Opposes Unions Employers were oftenforced to recognize and negotiate with trade unionsbecause they represented workers whose skills theyneeded. However, employers generally regardedunions as illegitimate conspiracies that interferedwith their property rights. Owners of large corpora-tions particularly opposed industrial unions, whichunited all craft workers and common laborers in aparticular industry.
Companies used several techniques to preventunions from forming. They required workers to take
Reading Check
Unsafe Working Conditions Workers in the late 1800s often faced unsafe working conditions. Many began to
join labor unions in an attempt to improve these conditions. What unsafe conditions does this photograph of a
steel mill show?
History
CHAPTER 14 Industrialization 455
often unhealthy and dangerous. Workers breathed inlint, dust, and toxic fumes. Heavy machines lackingsafety devices caused a high number of injuries.
Despite the difficult working conditions, industri-alism brought about a dramatic rise in the standardof living. While only a few entrepreneurs becamerich, real wages earned by the average worker roseby about 50 percent between 1860 and 1890.
Despite the rise in the standard of living, theuneven division of income between the wealthy andthe working class caused resentment among workers.In 1900 the average industrial worker made 22¢ perhour and worked 59 hours per week.
At the same time, an economic phenomenon ofthe late 1800s made relations between workers andemployers even more difficult. Between 1865 and1897, the United States experienced deflation, or arise in the value of money. Throughout the late1800s, deflation caused prices to fall, whichincreased the buying power of workers’ wages.Although companies cut wages regularly in the late1800s, prices fell even faster, so that wages wereactually still going up in buying power. Workers,however, believed that companies wanted to paythem less money for the samework. Eventually, many work-ers decided that the only wayto improve their working con-ditions was to organize unions.With a union, they could bar-gain collectively to negotiatehigher wages and better work-ing conditions.
Describing What aspects of
industrial life caused frustration for
workers in the late 1800s?
Early UnionsThere were two basic types
of industrial workers in theUnited States in the 1800s—craft workers and commonlaborers. Craft workers hadspecial skills and training.They included machinists, ironmolders, stonecutters, glass-blowers, shoemakers, printers,carpenters, and many others.Craft workers generallyreceived higher wages and
had more control over how they organized their timeon the shop floor. Common laborers had few skillsand received lower wages.
In the 1830s, as industrialism began to spread,craft workers began to form trade unions—unionslimited to people with specific skills. By 1873 therewere 32 national trade unions in the United States.Among the largest and most successful were the IronMolders’ International Union, the InternationalTypographical Union, and the Knights of St.Crispin—the shoemakers’ union.
Industry Opposes Unions Employers were oftenforced to recognize and negotiate with trade unionsbecause they represented workers whose skills theyneeded. However, employers generally regardedunions as illegitimate conspiracies that interferedwith their property rights. Owners of large corpora-tions particularly opposed industrial unions, whichunited all craft workers and common laborers in aparticular industry.
Companies used several techniques to preventunions from forming. They required workers to take
Reading Check
Unsafe Working Conditions Workers in the late 1800s often faced unsafe working conditions. Many began to
join labor unions in an attempt to improve these conditions. What unsafe conditions does this photograph of a
steel mill show?
History
CHAPTER 14 Industrialization 455
oaths or sign contracts promising not to join a union,and they hired detectives to go undercover andidentify union organizers. Workers who tried toorganize a union or strike were fired and placed on ablacklist—a list of “troublemakers.” Once black-listed, a laborer could get a job only by changing res-idence, trade, or even his or her name.
If workers formed a union, companies often useda lockout to break it. They locked workers out of theproperty and refused to pay them. If the union calleda strike, employers would hire replacement workers,or strikebreakers, also known as scabs.
Political and Social Opposition Workers whowanted to organize a union faced several major prob-lems. There were no laws giving workers the right toorganize or requiring owners to negotiate with them.Courts frequently ruled that strikes were “conspira-cies in restraint of trade,” for which labor leadersmight be fined or jailed.
Unions also suffered from the perception that theythreatened American institutions. In the late 1800s,the ideas of Karl Marx, called Marxism, had becomevery influential in Europe. Marx argued that thebasic force shaping capitalist society was the classstruggle between workers and owners. He believed
that workers would eventually revolt, seize control ofthe factories, and overthrow the government.
Marxists claimed that after the revolution, the gov-ernment would seize all private property and create asocialist society where wealth was evenly divided.Eventually, Marx thought, the state would witheraway, leaving a Communist society where classes didnot exist. Marxism strongly shaped the thinking ofEuropean unions.
While many labor supporters agreed with Marx, afew supported anarchism. Anarchists believe thatsociety does not need any government. At the time,some believed that with only a few acts of violence,they could ignite a revolution to topple the govern-ment. In the late 1800s, anarchists assassinated gov-ernment officials and set off bombs all across Europe,hoping to trigger a revolution.
As Marxist and anarchist ideas spread in Europe,tens of thousands of European immigrants beganarriving in the United States. Nativism—anti-immigrant feelings—was already strong in theUnited States. As people began to associate immi-grant workers with revolution and anarchism, theybecame increasingly suspicious of unions. Thesefears, as well as the government’s duty to maintainlaw and order, often led officials to use the courts,
the police, and even the army tocrush strikes and break up unions.
Identifying
Why were some Americans suspicious of
Unions?
The Struggle toOrganize
Although workers attempted onmany occasions to create large indus-trial unions, they rarely succeeded. Inmany cases the confrontations withowners and the government led toviolence and bloodshed. In 1868William Sylvis, president of the IronMolders Union and leader of theNational Labor Union, wrote to KarlMarx to encourage Marx’s work andexpress his own hopes:
“Our cause is a common
one. . . . Go ahead in the good
work that you have undertaken,
until the most glorious success
crowns your efforts . . . monied
Reading Checki n H i s t o r yMother Jones 1830–1930
Mary Harris “Mother” Jones emi-grated to the United States from Irelandin 1835 at the age of five. Jonesbecame the nation’s most prominentwoman union leader after a tragicpersonal loss. In 1867 her husbandGeorge, a union organizer, and theirfour children died from yellow fever.
Widowed and childless, Jones movedto Chicago and opened a dressmaker’sshop. From her shop window, Jonescould see the effects of the economicdownturn of the 1870s: “poor shiveringwretches, jobless and hungry.” At nightshe attended rallies for the Knights ofLabor.
By 1890 Jones had become anorganizer for the United Mine Workers.In 1897 she traveled to West Virginia.The intrepid labor organizer trudgedfrom camp to camp along railroadtracks or rode atop farm wagons. Sheslept in a tent.
A journalist who followed Jones onher trip reported that Jones began herspeeches slowly, encouraging her listen-ers to “look on yourselves, and uponeach other. Let us consider this togetherfor I am one of you, and I know what itis to suffer.” Then Mother Jones wouldmake an impassioned plea for the min-ers to join the union. “You pity your-selves, but you do not pity yourbrothers, or you would stand togetherto help one another.”
456 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
oaths or sign contracts promising not to join a union,and they hired detectives to go undercover andidentify union organizers. Workers who tried toorganize a union or strike were fired and placed on ablacklist—a list of “troublemakers.” Once black-listed, a laborer could get a job only by changing res-idence, trade, or even his or her name.
If workers formed a union, companies often useda lockout to break it. They locked workers out of theproperty and refused to pay them. If the union calleda strike, employers would hire replacement workers,or strikebreakers, also known as scabs.
Political and Social Opposition Workers whowanted to organize a union faced several major prob-lems. There were no laws giving workers the right toorganize or requiring owners to negotiate with them.Courts frequently ruled that strikes were “conspira-cies in restraint of trade,” for which labor leadersmight be fined or jailed.
Unions also suffered from the perception that theythreatened American institutions. In the late 1800s,the ideas of Karl Marx, called Marxism, had becomevery influential in Europe. Marx argued that thebasic force shaping capitalist society was the classstruggle between workers and owners. He believed
that workers would eventually revolt, seize control ofthe factories, and overthrow the government.
Marxists claimed that after the revolution, the gov-ernment would seize all private property and create asocialist society where wealth was evenly divided.Eventually, Marx thought, the state would witheraway, leaving a Communist society where classes didnot exist. Marxism strongly shaped the thinking ofEuropean unions.
While many labor supporters agreed with Marx, afew supported anarchism. Anarchists believe thatsociety does not need any government. At the time,some believed that with only a few acts of violence,they could ignite a revolution to topple the govern-ment. In the late 1800s, anarchists assassinated gov-ernment officials and set off bombs all across Europe,hoping to trigger a revolution.
As Marxist and anarchist ideas spread in Europe,tens of thousands of European immigrants beganarriving in the United States. Nativism—anti-immigrant feelings—was already strong in theUnited States. As people began to associate immi-grant workers with revolution and anarchism, theybecame increasingly suspicious of unions. Thesefears, as well as the government’s duty to maintainlaw and order, often led officials to use the courts,
the police, and even the army tocrush strikes and break up unions.
Identifying
Why were some Americans suspicious of
Unions?
The Struggle toOrganize
Although workers attempted onmany occasions to create large indus-trial unions, they rarely succeeded. Inmany cases the confrontations withowners and the government led toviolence and bloodshed. In 1868William Sylvis, president of the IronMolders Union and leader of theNational Labor Union, wrote to KarlMarx to encourage Marx’s work andexpress his own hopes:
“Our cause is a common
one. . . . Go ahead in the good
work that you have undertaken,
until the most glorious success
crowns your efforts . . . monied
Reading Checki n H i s t o r yMother Jones 1830–1930
Mary Harris “Mother” Jones emi-grated to the United States from Irelandin 1835 at the age of five. Jonesbecame the nation’s most prominentwoman union leader after a tragicpersonal loss. In 1867 her husbandGeorge, a union organizer, and theirfour children died from yellow fever.
Widowed and childless, Jones movedto Chicago and opened a dressmaker’sshop. From her shop window, Jonescould see the effects of the economicdownturn of the 1870s: “poor shiveringwretches, jobless and hungry.” At nightshe attended rallies for the Knights ofLabor.
By 1890 Jones had become anorganizer for the United Mine Workers.In 1897 she traveled to West Virginia.The intrepid labor organizer trudgedfrom camp to camp along railroadtracks or rode atop farm wagons. Sheslept in a tent.
A journalist who followed Jones onher trip reported that Jones began herspeeches slowly, encouraging her listen-ers to “look on yourselves, and uponeach other. Let us consider this togetherfor I am one of you, and I know what itis to suffer.” Then Mother Jones wouldmake an impassioned plea for the min-ers to join the union. “You pity your-selves, but you do not pity yourbrothers, or you would stand togetherto help one another.”
456 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
power is fast eating up the substance of the people.
We have made war upon it, and we mean to win it. If
we can we will win through the ballot box; if not, we
will resort to sterner means. A little bloodletting is
sometimes necessary in desperate causes.”—quoted in Industrialism and
the American Worker
The Great Railroad Strike of 1877 In 1873 a
severe recession known as the Panic of 1873 struck
the American economy and forced many companies
to cut wages. In July 1877, as the recession continued,
several railroads announced another round of wage
cuts. This triggered the first nationwide labor protest.
The day after the cuts took effect, railroad workers in
Martinsburg, West Virginia, walked off the job and
blocked the tracks.
As word spread, railroad workers across the coun-
try walked off the job. The strike eventually involved
80,000 railroad workers in 11 states and affected two-
thirds of the nation’s railways. Angry strikers
smashed equipment, tore up tracks, and blocked rail
service in New York, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, St. Louis,
and Chicago. The governors of several states called
out their militias to stop the violence. In many places,
gun battles erupted between the militia and striking
workers.
Determined to stop the violence, President Hayes
ordered the army to open the railroad between
Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. He then sent troops to
Chicago, where the strike had paralyzed the entire
city. The troops restored order, but by the time the
strike ended, more than 100 people lay dead, and
millions of dollars of property had been destroyed.
The Knights of Labor The failure of the Great
Railroad Strike convinced many labor organizers that
workers across the nation needed to be better organ-
ized. By the late 1870s, enough workers had joined a
new organization, the Knights of Labor, to make it
the first nationwide industrial union.
The Knights called for an eight-hour workday and
a government bureau of labor statistics. They also
supported equal pay for women, the abolition of
child labor, and the creation of worker-owned facto-
ries. The Knights’ leaders initially opposed the use
of strikes, preferring to use boycotts to pressure
Coeurd’Alene,
1892, 1899
Leadville, 1896
Cripple Creek, 1903–04
Texas andPacific R.R.,
1886
Birmingham-Bessemer
1894
Haymarket Riot, 1886
Pullman, 1894
Homestead, 1892
BaltimoreRail Strike,
1877
TROPIC OF CANCER
40ºN
30ºN
120ºW110ºW
90ºW 80ºW
60ºW
70ºW
N
S
EW
400 kilometers0Lambert Equal-Area projection
400 miles0
Atlantic
Ocean
Gulf of Mexico
Pacific
Ocean
CANADAWASH.
MEXICO
OREG.
CALIF.
NEV.
IDAHO
MONT.
WYO.
UTAHCOLO.
ARIZ.TERR. N. MEX.
TERR.
N. DAK.
S. DAK.
NEBR.
KANS.
OKLA.TERR.
IND.TERR.
TEXASLA.
ARK.
MO.
IOWA
MINN.
WIS.
ILL.
MISS.ALA.
FLA.
GA.S.C.
N.C.TENN.
KY.
IND.
MICH.
OHIOW.VA. VA.
PA.
N.Y.
VT.
CONN.R.I.
MASS.N.H.
ME.
N.J.DEL.
MD.
1. Interpreting Maps In what part of the nation did most
of the strikes occur?
2. Applying Geography Skills Why did most of the labor
conflicts take place where they did?
Railroad strike
Miners' strike
Other strike or riot
Counties with strikeactivity, 1881–1894
No strikes reported
1890 border
CHAPTER 14 Industrialization 457
Strikes and Labor Unrest, 1870–1890
employers. They also supported arbitration, aprocess in which an impartial third party helps work-ers and management reach an agreement.
In the early 1880s, the Knights began to use strikes,and they achieved great success initially. After strik-ing Knights convinced one of Jay Gould’s railroads toreverse wage cuts in 1885, membership in the unionleapt from 100,000 to 700,000 in less than a year. Thefollowing year, 1886, marked the peak of their suc-cess. In the spring of that year, an event known as theHaymarket Riot undermined the Knights’ reputa-tion, and the union rapidly declined.
The Haymarket Riot In the early 1880s, the move-ment for an eight-hour workday began to build sup-port. In 1886 organizers called for a nationwidestrike on May 1 to show support for the idea. On thatdate, strikes took place in many cities, includingChicago.
On May 3, a clash between strikers and police inChicago left one striker dead. The next evening, ananarchist group organized a meeting in Chicago’sHaymarket Square to protest the killing. Around3,000 people gathered to hear the speeches. Whenpolice entered the square, someone threw a bomb.The police opened fire, and workers shot back. Sevenpolice officers and four workers were killed.
Police arrested eight people for the bombing.Seven of those arrested were German immigrantsand advocates of anarchism. The incident hor-rified people across the country.
No one knew who threw the bomb.Although the evidence was weak, alleight men were convicted, and fourwere later executed. Unfortunately forthe Knights of Labor, one of the menarrested was a member of the union.The incident badly hurt the Knights’reputation, and they began to losemembers rapidly.
The Pullman Strike Although theHaymarket Riot set back the drive tocreate industrial unions, other labororganizers continued their efforts. In1893 railroad workers created the American RailwayUnion (ARU) under the leadership of Eugene V.Debs. One of the companies the ARU unionized wasthe Pullman Palace Car Company.
The Pullman Company was based in Illinois. Ithad built a town named Pullman near its factory andrequired its workers to live in the town and to buygoods from company stores. In 1893 a depression
struck the United States, causing the PullmanCompany to slash wages. The wage cuts made it dif-ficult for workers to pay their rent or the high pricesat the company stores. In May 1894, after Pullmanfired three workers who complained, a strike began.In support, the ARU stopped handling Pullman carsall across the United States.
The boycott of Pullman cars tied up railroads andthreatened to paralyze the economy. Determined to break the union, railroad managers arranged for U.S. mail cars to be attached to the Pullman cars.If the strikers refused to handle the Pullman cars,they would be interfering with the U.S. mail, aviolation of federal law. President Grover Clevelandthen sent in troops, claiming it was his responsi-bility to keep the mail running. When a federalcourt issued an injunction, or formal court order,directing the union to halt the boycott, both thestrike at Pullman and the ARU collapsed.
Analyzing Why did industrial
unions frequently fail in the late 1800s?
The American Federation of LaborAlthough large-scale industrial unions generally
failed in the late 1800s, trade unions continued to pros-per. In 1886 delegates from over 20 of the nation’s
trade unions organized the American Federationof Labor (AFL). The AFL’s first leader was
Samuel Gompers. His approach to laborrelations—which he called “plain and
simple” unionism—helped unions tobecome accepted in American society.
Gompers believed that unions shouldstay out of politics. He rejected socialistand communist ideas. Rather, hebelieved that the AFL should fight forsmall gains—such as higher wages andbetter working conditions—within theAmerican system. He was willing to usethe strike but preferred to negotiate.
Under Gompers’s leadership, theAFL had three main goals. First, it triedto convince companies to recognize
unions and to agree to collective bargaining. Second,it pushed for closed shops, meaning that companiescould only hire union members. Third, it promotedan eight-hour workday.
The AFL grew slowly, but by 1900 it was the biggestunion in the country, with over 500,000 members. Still,at that time, the AFL represented less than 15 percentof all non-farm workers. All unions, including railroad
Reading Check
458 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
Samuel Gompers
employers. They also supported arbitration, aprocess in which an impartial third party helps work-ers and management reach an agreement.
In the early 1880s, the Knights began to use strikes,and they achieved great success initially. After strik-ing Knights convinced one of Jay Gould’s railroads toreverse wage cuts in 1885, membership in the unionleapt from 100,000 to 700,000 in less than a year. Thefollowing year, 1886, marked the peak of their suc-cess. In the spring of that year, an event known as theHaymarket Riot undermined the Knights’ reputa-tion, and the union rapidly declined.
The Haymarket Riot In the early 1880s, the move-ment for an eight-hour workday began to build sup-port. In 1886 organizers called for a nationwidestrike on May 1 to show support for the idea. On thatdate, strikes took place in many cities, includingChicago.
On May 3, a clash between strikers and police inChicago left one striker dead. The next evening, ananarchist group organized a meeting in Chicago’sHaymarket Square to protest the killing. Around3,000 people gathered to hear the speeches. Whenpolice entered the square, someone threw a bomb.The police opened fire, and workers shot back. Sevenpolice officers and four workers were killed.
Police arrested eight people for the bombing.Seven of those arrested were German immigrantsand advocates of anarchism. The incident hor-rified people across the country.
No one knew who threw the bomb.Although the evidence was weak, alleight men were convicted, and fourwere later executed. Unfortunately forthe Knights of Labor, one of the menarrested was a member of the union.The incident badly hurt the Knights’reputation, and they began to losemembers rapidly.
The Pullman Strike Although theHaymarket Riot set back the drive tocreate industrial unions, other labororganizers continued their efforts. In1893 railroad workers created the American RailwayUnion (ARU) under the leadership of Eugene V.Debs. One of the companies the ARU unionized wasthe Pullman Palace Car Company.
The Pullman Company was based in Illinois. Ithad built a town named Pullman near its factory andrequired its workers to live in the town and to buygoods from company stores. In 1893 a depression
struck the United States, causing the PullmanCompany to slash wages. The wage cuts made it dif-ficult for workers to pay their rent or the high pricesat the company stores. In May 1894, after Pullmanfired three workers who complained, a strike began.In support, the ARU stopped handling Pullman carsall across the United States.
The boycott of Pullman cars tied up railroads andthreatened to paralyze the economy. Determined to break the union, railroad managers arranged for U.S. mail cars to be attached to the Pullman cars.If the strikers refused to handle the Pullman cars,they would be interfering with the U.S. mail, aviolation of federal law. President Grover Clevelandthen sent in troops, claiming it was his responsi-bility to keep the mail running. When a federalcourt issued an injunction, or formal court order,directing the union to halt the boycott, both thestrike at Pullman and the ARU collapsed.
Analyzing Why did industrial
unions frequently fail in the late 1800s?
The American Federation of LaborAlthough large-scale industrial unions generally
failed in the late 1800s, trade unions continued to pros-per. In 1886 delegates from over 20 of the nation’s
trade unions organized the American Federationof Labor (AFL). The AFL’s first leader was
Samuel Gompers. His approach to laborrelations—which he called “plain and
simple” unionism—helped unions tobecome accepted in American society.
Gompers believed that unions shouldstay out of politics. He rejected socialistand communist ideas. Rather, hebelieved that the AFL should fight forsmall gains—such as higher wages andbetter working conditions—within theAmerican system. He was willing to usethe strike but preferred to negotiate.
Under Gompers’s leadership, theAFL had three main goals. First, it triedto convince companies to recognize
unions and to agree to collective bargaining. Second,it pushed for closed shops, meaning that companiescould only hire union members. Third, it promotedan eight-hour workday.
The AFL grew slowly, but by 1900 it was the biggestunion in the country, with over 500,000 members. Still,at that time, the AFL represented less than 15 percentof all non-farm workers. All unions, including railroad
Reading Check
458 CHAPTER 14 Industrialization
Samuel Gompers
CHAPTER 14 Industrialization 459
unions, represented only 18 percent. As the 1900sbegan, the vast majority of workers remained unor-ganized, and unions were relatively weak.
Analyzing What AFL policies
contributed to its growth as a union?
Working WomenThroughout the 1800s, most wage-earning work-
ers in the United States were men. After the CivilWar, the number of women wage earners began toincrease. By 1900 women made up more than 18 per-cent of the labor force.
The type of jobs women did outside the home inthe late 1800s and early 1900s reflected society’s ideasabout what constituted “women’s work.” Roughlyone-third of women worked as domestic servants.Another third worked as teachers, nurses, salesclerks, and secretaries. The remaining third wereindustrial workers, but they were employed in lightindustrial jobs that people believed appropriate totheir gender. Many worked in the garment industryand food processing plants.
Regardless of their employment, women werepaid less than men even when they performed thesame jobs. It was assumed that a woman had a manhelping to support her, either her father or her hus-band, and that a man needed higher wages to sup-port a family. For this reason, most unions, includingthe AFL, excluded women.
In 1903 two woman labor organizers, MaryKenney O’Sullivan and Leonora O’Reilly, decided toestablish a separate union for women. With the help
of Jane Addams and Lillian Wald—the founders ofthe settlement house movement—they establishedthe Women’s Trade Union League (WTUL), the firstnational association dedicated to promotingwomen’s labor issues. The WTUL pushed for aneight-hour day, the creation of a minimum wage, anend to evening work for women, and the abolition ofchild labor. The WTUL also collected funds to sup-port women on strike.
Comparing How were female
industrial workers treated differently than male workers in the
late 1800s?
Reading Check
Reading Check
Writing About History
Checking for Understanding
1. Define: deflation, trade union,industrial union, lockout, Marxism,arbitration, closed shop.
2. Identify: blacklist, Knights of Labor,injunction.
3. List the groups of workers representedby the Knights of Labor and theAmerican Federation of Labor.
Reviewing Themes
4. Individual Action What political contribution did Mary Harris “Mother”Jones make to American society?
Critical Thinking
5. Analyzing Why did early labor unionsfail?
6. Organizing Use a graphic organizersimilar to the one below to list the fac-tors that led to an increase in unions inthe late 1800s.
Analyzing Visuals
7. Analyzing Photographs Examine thephotograph at the top of this page ofworkers in a watch factory. Most of thepeople in the picture are women. Whatdo you think the jobs were of the menin the photograph?
Factors Contributing
to Unionization
Detail Work These women worked in the National Elgin Watch
Company’s gilding room, where they gilded metal watches with thin layers
of gold. What do you notice about their working conditions?
History
8. Persuasive Writing Imagine that youare an American worker living in one ofthe nation’s large cities. Write a letter toa friend explaining why you support oroppose the work of labor unions.
CHAPTER 14 Industrialization 459
unions, represented only 18 percent. As the 1900sbegan, the vast majority of workers remained unor-ganized, and unions were relatively weak.
Analyzing What AFL policies
contributed to its growth as a union?
Working WomenThroughout the 1800s, most wage-earning work-
ers in the United States were men. After the CivilWar, the number of women wage earners began toincrease. By 1900 women made up more than 18 per-cent of the labor force.
The type of jobs women did outside the home inthe late 1800s and early 1900s reflected society’s ideasabout what constituted “women’s work.” Roughlyone-third of women worked as domestic servants.Another third worked as teachers, nurses, salesclerks, and secretaries. The remaining third wereindustrial workers, but they were employed in lightindustrial jobs that people believed appropriate totheir gender. Many worked in the garment industryand food processing plants.
Regardless of their employment, women werepaid less than men even when they performed thesame jobs. It was assumed that a woman had a manhelping to support her, either her father or her hus-band, and that a man needed higher wages to sup-port a family. For this reason, most unions, includingthe AFL, excluded women.
In 1903 two woman labor organizers, MaryKenney O’Sullivan and Leonora O’Reilly, decided toestablish a separate union for women. With the help
of Jane Addams and Lillian Wald—the founders ofthe settlement house movement—they establishedthe Women’s Trade Union League (WTUL), the firstnational association dedicated to promotingwomen’s labor issues. The WTUL pushed for aneight-hour day, the creation of a minimum wage, anend to evening work for women, and the abolition ofchild labor. The WTUL also collected funds to sup-port women on strike.
Comparing How were female
industrial workers treated differently than male workers in the
late 1800s?
Reading Check
Reading Check
Writing About History
Checking for Understanding
1. Define: deflation, trade union,industrial union, lockout, Marxism,arbitration, closed shop.
2. Identify: blacklist, Knights of Labor,injunction.
3. List the groups of workers representedby the Knights of Labor and theAmerican Federation of Labor.
Reviewing Themes
4. Individual Action What political contribution did Mary Harris “Mother”Jones make to American society?
Critical Thinking
5. Analyzing Why did early labor unionsfail?
6. Organizing Use a graphic organizersimilar to the one below to list the fac-tors that led to an increase in unions inthe late 1800s.
Analyzing Visuals
7. Analyzing Photographs Examine thephotograph at the top of this page ofworkers in a watch factory. Most of thepeople in the picture are women. Whatdo you think the jobs were of the menin the photograph?
Factors Contributing
to Unionization
Detail Work These women worked in the National Elgin Watch
Company’s gilding room, where they gilded metal watches with thin layers
of gold. What do you notice about their working conditions?
History
8. Persuasive Writing Imagine that youare an American worker living in one ofthe nation’s large cities. Write a letter toa friend explaining why you support oroppose the work of labor unions.
Reviewing Key Facts
23. Identify: Morrill Tariff, Andrew Carnegie.
24. The United States had an advantage in industrializing due to
its resources and large workforce. What resources did the
nation have? Why was its workforce large?
25. How did inventions contribute to economic growth in the
United States in the late 1800s?
26. How did the federal government encourage railroad compa-
nies to construct railroads?
27. What new methods of selling products were developed in the
late 1800s?
28. Why did workers try to organize labor unions in the United
States in the late 1800s?
29. What were the two basic types of workers in American indus-
try at this time?
Critical Thinking
30. Analyzing Themes: Individual Action List the names and
actions of five people who contributed to American eco-
nomic growth in the late 1800s.
31. Organizing Use a graphic organizer similar to the one
below to list the factors that led to making the United States
an industrial nation.
32. Interpreting Primary Sources Americans like Ida Tarbell
criticized large corporations such as the Standard Oil
Company. In the following excerpt from History of the
Standard Oil Company, she warns of the results of
Rockefeller’s business practices on the nation’s morality.
Read the excerpt and answer the questions that follow:
“Very often people who admit the facts, who are will-
ing to see that Mr. Rockefeller has employed force and
fraud to secure his ends, justify him by declaring, ‘It’s
business.’ That is, ‘It’s business’ has come to be a legiti-
mate excuse for hard dealing, sly tricks, special privileges.
It is a common enough thing to hear men arguing that
the ordinary laws of morality do not apply in business.
1. gross national product
2. laissez-faire
3. entrepreneur
4. time zone
5. land grant
6. corporation
7. economies of scale
8. fixed costs
9. operating costs
10. pool
11. vertical integration
12. horizontal integration
13. monopoly
14. trust
15. holding company
16. deflation
17. trade union
18. industrial union
19. lockout
20. Marxism
21. arbitration
22. closed shop
Reviewing Key TermsOn a sheet of paper, use each of these terms in a sentence.
Factors Leading
to Industrialization
Abundant natural resources
Cheap immigrant labor force
High tariffs that reduced foreign goods
National communication and transportation networks
Little or no government intervention
Development of pools, trusts, holding companies, and monopolies
Small businesses could not compete with economies–of–scale of large businesses
Practices of some big businesses sometimes limited competition
•
•
•
•
•
•
Rural migration and immigration created large, concentrated workforce
In large–scale industries, low wages, long hours, and dangerous working conditions were common
First large unions formed but had little bargaining power against large companies
•
•
•
•
Factors Behind Industrialization
Changing Workplace
Growth of Business
•
As for the ethical side, there is no cure but in an
increasing scorn of unfair play. . . . When the business-
man who fights to secure special privileges, to crowd his
competitor off the track by other than fair competitive
methods, receives the same summary disdainful
ostracism by his fellows that the doctor or lawyer who is
‘unprofessional,’ the athlete who abuses the rules,
receives, we shall have gone a long way toward making
commerce a fit pursuit for our young men.”—quoted in Readings in American History
a. According to Tarbell, what practices had Rockefeller
used to establish the Standard Oil Company?
b. In what way did Tarbell believe the attitudes of the
American people contributed to Rockefeller’s business
practices?
33. Analyzing Analyze the impact of technological innovations
and industrialization on the American labor movement.
Practicing Skills
34. Making Inferences Reread the passage titled “Working in
the United States” from Section 4, page 454. Then answer
the following questions.
a. What facts are stated about working conditions in the
United States during this time period?
b. Based on your answer to the previous question, what can
you infer about the attitude of employers toward their
workers during this time?
Writing Activity
35. Portfolio Writing: Persuasive Writing Think of a product
that you think is essential to life today. Write an advertise-
ment for this product that would persuade people to
purchase it.
Chapter Activity
36. American History Primary Source Document Library
CD-ROM Read “Driving the Golden Spike” by Alexander
Toponce, under Reshaping the Nation. For further back-
ground, reread your textbook’s coverage of the same subject
on page 443. Then prepare a presentation for your class-
mates. In it, describe what Toponce had to say about the
workers during the celebration and what Grenville Dodge
had to say about their experience during the project. What
attitudes do you think each man had toward the workers?
Economics and History
37. The graph above shows steel production from 1865 to 1900.
Study the graph and answer the questions below.
a. Interpreting Graphs Between what years did steel
production have the greatest increase?
b. Making Inferences How did increased steel production
contribute to American industrialism?
Steel Production, 1865–1900
Source: Historical Statistics of the United States: Colonial Times to 1970.
Mill
ion
s o
f To
ns
1865 1870 1875 1880 1885 1890 1895 1900
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Year
HISTORY
Self-Check QuizVisit the American Vision Web site at tav.glencoe.com
and click on Self-Check Quizzes—Chapter 14 to
assess your knowledge of chapter content.
StandardizedTest Practice
Directions: Choose the best answer to the
following question.
Labor unions were formed for all of these reasons except:
F To improve workers’ wages
G To protect factory owners from being sued
H To make factories safer
J To prevent children from working long hours
Test-Taking Tip: If a question uses the word except, you
need to look for the answer that does not fit. Remember
that unions were formed to try to help workers. Which
answer is least likely to help workers?
CHAPTER 14 Industrialization 461